ILKLEY will be adopting a no-holds barred approach with nothing to lose when they face the North Premier leaders this weekend, according to head of rugby Rhys Morgan.

The Stacks Field side slumped to bottom place following a 36-20 defeat at Wirral last weekend to give them one win and five defeats from their opening six league games.

Now Ilkley face a tough task when they welcome Billingham to Stacks Field on Saturday. The leaders have a 100 per cent record so far, with a +118-point difference, five points ahead of second-placed Harrogate.

But Morgan remains bullish despite the challenge ahead, saying his side will play in a flamboyant manner in a bid to face Billingham head-on.

Morgan said: "I'm not dreading this Saturday's match. It is top of the league v bottom. We have nothing to lose.

"We know what people are expecting to happen. Nobody is expecting us to win and do a damage limitation exercise. We are at home, on grass, and Billingham usually play on 4G.

"We are underdogs and we will go out there and give it a shot.

"We might change our side a bit as the pressure is off us. We will see what happens.

"We will go out and mix things up with our tactics, become more flamboyant and see where we are.

"We will be no-holds barred and give it a shot. We will want to go down fighting, if we do, and look to play rugby and see where we are after 80 minutes."

Morgan added his side are going through a rebuilding process this season after a 10-year period of more wins than defeats and continued success.

He said: "We have had some successful, brilliant years. You go through four-year peaks and troughs in rugby. We have had a 10-year peak now, playing some fantastic rugby.

"I am trying to come to terms with not winning as much this season as we have in the past.

"We are an amateur club, we can't buy a player. I am relying on what's in the area. We will do everything we can to attract players. The boys we have got are good players, but they have got to get up to speed. In a couple of years they may well be pushing us for success. They are learning their trade, there is a lot of 18 to 19-year-olds.

"On Saturday, every game these lads play gives them experience. We don't lack anything in terms of commitment or desire. We have been outmuscled and it's something we are looking to rectify.

Morgan added the club are looking to recruit a tighthead prop who could act as a player-coach to help his younger side and give them experience during matches.