Premier Status Almost A Reality For Wainuiomata

Wainuiomata will be anxiously looking over their shoulders over the next three weeks of round-robin play. The unlikely competition leaders have collected 19 out of a possible 20 competition points on offer throughout the first four rounds of the Hardham Cup competition and on paper look set to make the semi-finals in three weeks.

But their focus will still firmly be on trying to secure their premier status next year, ahead of the ailing Johnsonville side whom they beat 14-11 three weeks ago. A goal they will finally achieve after this week's fifth round if Upper Hutt can beat Johnsonville. Currently with an 11-point buffer over fifth placed Johnsonville, and regardless of their own fortunes throughout the last three rounds, Wainuiomata will make next year's Swindale Shield and also the Hardham cup playoffs at Johnsonville's expense if Upper Hutt can beat Johnsonville when they meet at Helston Park this weekend.

Meaning it is literally sink or swim time for Johnsonville this weekend, which on form will be too tough of an assignment for Johnsonville, even with Chris Masoe playing for them again. They have so far succumbed to Western Suburbs and Oriental-Rongotai as well as to Wainuiomata. Upper Hutt will bring the competition's best points differential to this contest, after scoring 177 points in their last three games and only conceding 17, and beating Western Suburbs 36-10 two starts back.

That's just as well for Wainuiomata, as their final three opponents will certainly be a step up from what they have faced so far. Their remaining matches see them play Ories at the Polo Ground, Wests at William Jones Park and Upper Hutt at Maidstone Park and it is entirely possible they will collect no further points against the big guns of the competition. This week's opponents, Ories will test them in all departments, with their experienced forwards and extra speed out wide possibly too much for them. But with Piri Weepu back on deck for them this week anything is possible.

In the remaining two round five matches, Western Suburbs meet Hutt Old Boys Marist at Ian Galloway Park, where a win for Wests will push them up the points table, while Northern United and Poneke square off in the early game at Porirua Park.

Of note, Rimutaka became the last club to challenge seriously for a place in the Swindale Shield in 2004, when they upset Ories in the fourth round, after just losing to eventual finalists Johnsonville in the first round. But their campaign petered out in the last two weeks when they were undone by losses to Poneke B and Marist St. Pats B and Ories beat them to the playoffs and the 2005 Swindale Shield round.