WEYMOUTH will have two representatives as the battle for the Britain’s Strongest Man trophy gets under way in Sheffield on Saturday.

Childhood friends Shane Flowers and Kane Francis will both take to the floor at Sheffield Arena as part of the hugely popular Giants Live circuit.

Spectator numbers could surpass 9,000 as Flowers seeks to improve on his fourth place in 2022, while Francis makes his debut after a late call-up.

The duo have top pedigree in strongman, with Flowers qualifying for World’s Strongest Man (WSM) last year and Francis claiming third overall in the Europe-wide Strongman Champions League (SCL).

READ MORE: Shane Flowers' World's Strongest Man dream ends after injury

Speaking to Echosport, Flowers, who was hampered by a foot injury at WSM in California last summer, has a podium place in his sights.

He said: “The Worlds didn’t go to plan with the foot injury. It wasn’t one of these catastrophic injuries that would take a long time.

“It was actually a persistent niggle that ended up being four months’ rehabilitation.

“It’s the ligament in control of the big toe and I partially ruptured that. I didn’t realise how important that was for Strongman!

“After World’s Strongest Man I was in need of down time. Ever since I started, I’ve never had a dedicated off-season.

“After Worlds I got married, went on honeymoon and just relaxed for a couple of months. I still trained but brought the bodyweight back down and worked on weaknesses.

“It all started to gear up 16 weeks ago. I feel really good, no injuries.

“I’m back up to just shy of 25 stone but fitter and faster than I’ve ever been. I’m pretty confident on the events.

“Last year I came fourth and just missed out on the podium by a couple of points. I’m definitely wanting this podium.

“Plus, I need to secure the invitation back to the Worlds this year. If you’re in the top five, you’re in with a shout, but top three it’s a guarantee.”

Asked how it would feel competing against good friend Francis, he said: “I’m buzzing, we grew up five minutes away from each other.

“I’ve known Kane for as long as I can remember. He’s got bigger and stronger and to compete alongside him is amazing, a dream come true.”

And Flowers backed Francis to raise a few eyebrows, adding: “He’s been training with me during my preparation.

“He’s been tagging along and I think Kane can do pretty well. Realistically he’s going to be anywhere between fifth to eight and he’ll surprise people on certain events.

“The loading medley, the running race, I think he’ll do exceptionally. I’m backing myself to win it and I think he’ll be second.

“In training, when we work out our average times, he’s only a second behind me so he’s hot on my tails.”

But Francis refused to get carried away, cooling talk of a strong performance.

He said: “For me, it’s another step up from what I’ve done before. I’ve only had nine days’ notice.

READ MORE: Kane Francis third in Strongman Champions League

“I haven’t really trained for it so it’s been about recovery for me. My target is to be around mid-table, just don’t come last!

“It’s an unknown for me, I have no idea how it’s going to go on the day.

“The biggest crowd we’ve had in SCL is maybe a couple of thousand people, this is 9,500 at Sheffield if it’s sold out.”

On Flowers’ chances, Francis added: “We’re best friends anyway so we’re always hammering each other, but it’s more encouragement at the moment.

“To be perfectly honest, I think Shane’s going to be on the podium. The way his training’s been going if he has a perfect day he could win it.”