It is the first competitive match between the Saints and the Blues in nearly three years, and the first league match at Goldington Road between the clubs since December 1999.

Unsurprisingly the match has been sold out for weeks and with around 2,000 Saints fans expected to make the short trip down the A428 Mallinder is expecting a passionate atmosphere.

“A local derby is always special,” he said. “The rivalry between Northampton and Bedford goes back for many years. There hasn’t been a competitive game between the clubs for some time and it will be a massive occasion tomorrow.

“The fans make the atmosphere and I’d like to thank the many hundreds of our supporters who will be making the trip.”

A little extra spice will be added to the match with the presence of eight former Saints in the Bedford squad (although James Pritchard is on World Cup duty with Canada) and two former Blues in the Northampton match-day squad in the shape of Ben Lewitt and Ian Vass.

Lewitt has warned that Saints shouldn’t underestimate what this match means to his old club.

“It is going to be a big game because they will be gunning for us,” he told the Chronicle and Echo earlier this week. “It is a sell-out and it is going to be a hostile atmosphere I am sure. We will have to be switched on.”

Bedford were defeated only once at home last season and won their only game of this campaign on home soil two weeks ago. Mallinder is expecting a tough battle.

“There is no margin for error,” he said. “We scored several tries last week but missed several other opportunities. Bedford will be looking to pounce on every mistake and we have been working very hard this week on every aspect of our game. The team is still building but I am happy with the progress so far as everyone adjusts to each other’s game.”

Three players have been added to the squad. Karl Rudzki and Darren Fox return and there is a first squad selection for Senior Academy scrum-half John Brake. The one omission is Mark Robinson who is serving a two-match suspension imposed by the club this week.

NORTHAMPTON SAINTS SQUAD TO PLAY BEDFORD BLUES
National League One
Goldington Road; Saturday, September 22nd; kick-off 3pm
Backs:
Chris Ashton, John Brake, Paul Diggin, James Downey, Barry Everitt, Johnny Howard, Robbie Kydd, Stephen Myler, Bruce Reihana, Carlos Spencer, Ian Vass, Tim Visser.

Forwards:
Chris Budgen, Simon Emms, Darren Fox, Joe Gray, Mark Hopley, Ben Lewitt, Matt Lord, Alex Rae, Karl Rudzki, Christian Short, Terry Sigley, Barry Stewart, Paul Tupai, Dave Ward.