London Irish Director of Rugby Declan Kidney believes his side are in for a real fight ahead of their away day clash against defending Gallagher Premiership champions Harlequins. 

The Exiles head to the Stoop on the back of two impressive showings in the Premiership Rugby Cup, in which they dispatched Northampton Saints and Saracens in consecutive weeks.

A season of inconsistency has seen Irish fail to fire in the league when it comes to results, with Kidney’s men only winning one of their opening eight encounters.

And Kidney expects the Saturday afternoon clash against Harlequins to be a tough, but exciting task for his side.  

“Going to the reigning champions’ home ground is never an easy task,” said Kidney.

“Harlequins are a dangerous outfit, as they have proved, but we are excited to front up against the challenge.

“There is always a great atmosphere whenever these two clubs play each other, and we expect the same tomorrow.”

While Irish head into the contest ninth in the Premiership, Quins sit inside the top four in third, having won five of their opening seven Premiership games.

However despite their differing fortunes when it comes to league position, both sides have scored over 200 points so far this season, with their Saturday showdown seeming to promise plenty of action.

And Kidney reckons his side will have to be at their best when it comes to matching Quins’ intensity.

“If you show any weakness at all in your defence, they will exploit it,” added Kidney.

“They have several players that will do that, they have been together a while and they have the confidence after winning the league last year. It’s up to us to put our best foot forward.

“For us, we have been in the contest in most of our matches, now it’s about sealing the deal.

“As a former teacher, I’ve seen a lot of school reports that say that ‘they have a lot of potential’.

“Potential doesn’t count for much unless you use it. That’s the task for us, use the potential that we have.”

With the Premiership Rugby Cup dominating the domestic rugby scene for the last two weeks, the Gallagher Premiership’s return sees a host of international stars returning to club action following the autumn internationals.

For Quins, it means a return to the starting XV for England prop Joe Marler, amidst a host of changes for the defending champions.

And Senior Coach Tabai Matson admits he’s thrilled by the prospect of tasting another Premiership local derby ahead of the Exiles arrival at the Stoop on Saturday.

"I'm still new here, but one of these things that I've learned is just how big of a London derby this match is for us,” said Matson.

“Our captain spoke in the week about how we know Irish are going to target this game, and we know it's going to be a tough one. 

“Not just because it's the first game back, but because it's a London derby. 

“It's great for me because I'm new here, but I'm learning all these rivalries and legacies and London Irish is one of those."