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Watsons in Shay cup showdown
BROTHERLY love is likely to be in short supply at the Shay on Sunday when the Watson siblings - Halifax's Ian and Eccles's Glynn - go head to head in the third round of the Challenge Cup.
Fax half back Ian, the elder of the pair at 30, will be confronted by the sight of 26 year old Glynn in the front row of the Eccles pack as he plots the undoing of the club which nurtured his own talent as a junior.
And the Wales international, who masterminded last weekend's 52-4 romp over Keighley, cannot wait.
"Eccles is the club where I grew up," said Watson. "I played there as a junior until I turned professional at 16.
"My brother plays there and I still have a lot of friends at the club so I am really looking forward to the game.
"Our Glynn's a prop, about six foot and a bit fatter than me!
"But he's not a bad player and we always played in the same sides until I got to under 13s when he stayed in the under 11s.
"He went to Oldham to play in the Academy a few years back and he was doing really well until they went bankrupt.
"After that he decided to go on a different career path and took up carpentry.
"He broke his ribs three weeks ago and they told him he had to play last weekend if he wanted to be considered for Sunday.
"But he got himself some padding and came through fine so he should be playing."
Watson senior's chances of involvement are unlikely to be influenced by the broken hand he suffered in the Northern Rail Cup win over York almost three weeks ago.
The former Salford, Rochdale and Oldham player turned out against the Cougars with the injury heavily strapped, but reported no ill effects.
"I knocked it up a bit towards the end, but after the game it didn't feel any worse than it did before kick off," said Watson, who knows as much as anyone about the strengths and weaknesses of Sunday's Conference opponents.
"Eccles like to try and be physical, although I don't think they will get much change out of our pack.
"I would say they are more of a hard working side than a flair team.
"The scrum half John McAtee was the next big thing when he was a kid and was the youngest player to ever play first team rugby for St Helens, so he's a good player.
"He's a bit sneaky but he can always turn a game and still has all the skills. He just says he can't run more than 10 yards now.
"He is their main dangerman."
And despite Watson's obvious affinity with his old club, no one should worry about him having divided loyalties this weekend.
"I am an Eccles lad and normally I would like them to do well, but I will be looking to put a big score on them on Sunday, there is no doubt about that," he said.
Fax video special - log on to www.halifaxcourier.co.uk tonight to see Ian Watson talk about the Eccles clash, and footage from Sunday's win over Keighley.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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