CHAMPIONS Saints break new ground when they play Castleford Tigers at Liverpool FC's Anfield home on Sunday, kick-off 3pm.

It will be Saints' first appearance at the Carling Premier League side's superbly-appointed stadium, and the Knowsley Road club are confident their massive following will be boosted even further by support from North Wales and other outlying areas.

The eagerly-awaited clash with the Tigers coincides with the launch of a massive promotional exercise in 13 Merseyside schools by Saints, with the entire squad taking the Rugby League message into areas such as Knowsley, Sefton and Wirral.

The match is not all-ticket and admission at all-seater Anfield is £13 adult and £6.50 junior and OAP (touchlines), and £10 and £5 (behind the posts), while all special buses have been fully booked and will leave Knowsley Road from1pm.

A pre-match entertainment programme has been devised; licensed bars and fast-food facilities will be available; as will car-parking for 1,000 vehicles with entrance from Priory Road, while Saints emphasise that proceeds from the half-time draw are for their benefit only.

Castleford will be seeking their first win of the season as new Australian coach Stuart Raper takes charge of his first game. With captain Lee Crooks nursing a knee injury the Tiger's line-up is expected to be:

Flowers; Smith, Vowles, Anderson, Middleton; Orr, Ford; Sampson, Russell, Sykes, Tonks, Schick, Tuuta. Substitutes Steadman, Gay, Lidden, Harland.

Referee is John Connolly, and the respective Academy sides will meet in a curtain-raiser kick-off 1pm

For the record Saints previous post-war games on soccer grounds were: Maine Road, Manchester1953 and 1991. Old Trafford, Manchester 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1996. Elland Road, Leeds 1985, 1988. Leeds Road, Huddersfield 1994. McAlpine Stadium, Huddersfield 1994, 1996.

Spotland, Rochdale 1990, 1996. Brunton Park, Carlisle 1982, 1983. Craven Cottage, Fulham 1982, 1984. Maidstone 1983. Burnden Park, Bolton 1985. The Valley, Charlton, 1996. Hillsborough, Sheffield 1989. Boundary Park, Oldham 1996.

Saints Alliance team travel to Castleford tonight, Thursday, kick-off 7.30pm.

Forthcoming events in the Gus O'Donnell testimonial include: Sportsman's Dinner at Stakis Hotel tomorrow, Friday. Main speaker ex-soccer star Steve Kindon. Tickets £17.50 from Jimmy O'Sullivan on St. Helens 28148. Mike Callaghan Roadshow, St. Anne's Club, Sutton, Wednesday, May 14. Tickets £2 from Ann Collins Marshalls Cross 818708 or by ringing St. Helens 758152.

Former Saints and Great Britain winger Stan McCormick is a patient in Ward G8 at Whiston Hospital after collapsing in the town centre on Saturday. Now aged 74, Stan joined Saints from Belle Vue Rangers in January 1949 and was a member of the Wembley side which lost to Huddersfield in 1953.

The local schoolboy Rugby League committee has a produced a souvenir programme to commemorate the centenary game against Batley on Cup Final day. A real collector's item, it will be on sale in the town centre on Saturday and at Anfield on Sunday price £2. Further details from Roger Grime on 734495.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.