Last updated 10:51, Friday, 30 May 2008

A KICK-OFF time of 10am on Sunday may mean few Tynedale supporters are likely to be able to cheer on Northumberland at Twickenham tomorrow.

However, the Northumberland side, comprising predominantly Tynedale players, will still be in good heart for the clash with Cornwall in the County Championship Shield final.

Both counties have already secured promotion to the elite group for next season, where they will go into the Bill Beaumont Cup.

Both will still be keen to lift the Shield though during an action-packed day at rugby headquarters which will also see Yorkshire taking on Devon in the Beaumont Cup, before England meet the Barbarians.

Northumberland coach Tom Borthwick has an injury free squad to select from and there is a very positive mood in the camp.

The only doubt is the availability of Tynedale centre Ben Duncan, who is scheduled to be going on a zoological field trip on Sunday morning and still needs clearance to join his group a day later.

Borthwick said: “Our main aim was always to get back into Division One of the championship.

“The calibre of players we have now is quite capable of competing at that level and we've managed that.

“That was half the task and now we want to see if we can bring the trophy home to finish the job.”

His first challenge now that he has a full complement of players for the first time is to decide on the right balance of the team and the best combination to put on the bench.

Borthwick said: “There are one or two areas that need some thought, and the right bench options could be crucial to the cause.

"The key is for us to prepare properly for the game. The early kick-off makes it a bit more difficult, but we're trying to prepare as professionally as we can.”

The team travel to London today, and are having a training session at London Scottish at 10am tomorrow, to give players a feeling of what it will be like on match day."

Cornwall has a strong rugby tradition, and supporters are likely to heavily outnumber Northumberland’s.

The team is drawn largely from Launceston, Mount's Bay and Redruth, all of which will be in National Division Two along with Tynedale next season.

Win or lose, the game will provide an opportunity to assess how the players compare.