Wharfedale welcome Preston Grasshoppers to Threshfield on Saturday afternoon for a fourth-round National League 2 North meeting between two sides whose opening weeks of the season have taken very different paths.

Preston arrive in Yorkshire unbeaten from their first three league matches, having collected three victories and 14 points. The Hoppers opened with a narrow home win over Heath before producing an impressive 31-12 away victory at Fylde, then followed that up last weekend with a high-scoring 52-33 win over Harrogate.

Wharfedale are still searching for their first league victory. Their opening three fixtures have brought defeats against Chester, Otley and Billingham, leaving them bottom of National League 2 North.

The fixture last season was a high-scoring affair, with Wharfedale winning 34-19 when the sides met in February.

The hosts will need to contain a Preston attack that has already crossed the 50-point mark, but the Hoppers can expect a determined Wharfedale response on home soil. With both previous meetings producing plenty of points, another entertaining contest could be in store.

Hoppers Head Coach Dan Orwin is expecting a more difficult challenge than the league table suggests.

He said: "We're looking forward to the challenge at Wharfedale on the back of our three positive results. It's a difficult place to go there and we haven't been very successful there in recent years."

Hoppers bright start however could be the key to changing their misfortune when facing Wharfedale onn their home turf.

Orwin added: "Confidence is high, we know we have to go their and get our performance right again."