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MSP And Tawa Vie For Opening Wins In Round Two

Swindale Shield Premier | 03 April 2008 | Steven White

MSP And Tawa Vie For Opening Wins In Round Two

In case you missed last weekend's Gala Day make sure to follow your favourite team throughout the remainder of the Swindale Shield. This week the action returns to a home ground format, giving six high quality games throughout the Wellington region every weekend until August.

This week's Club Weekly feature match comes from leafy Lyndhurst Park, where the home side Tawa and visitors Marist St. Pat's battle it out to try and raise their opening wins of 2008. Both are coming off narrow first round losses, Tawa losing to Upper Hutt 18-15 despite out scoring them two tries to nil, and MSP defeated 20-10 by Old Boys-University with first five-eighth Fa'atonu Fili scoring all the points.

The Club Weekly expects a ding-dong battle between these sides despite MSP winning eight of their last ten Swindale Shield and Jubilee Cup matches going back to 2002. But all these ten encounters with the exception of one have produced extremely close results, with margins of victory of seven points or under in each of the last nine matches between Tawa and MSP.? 2002's Swindale Shield encounter at Lyndhurst Park won by MSP 44-20 proved the exception to all these close results, while last year's 7-3 and 23-16 twin wins to MSP echoed the pattern in contests since.

While MSP finished runners-up to Hutt Old Boys Marist in last year's Jubilee Cup, they will have high hopes of lifting the Swindale Shield that they last won in 2000. Their squad is mostly settled this year and they have been boosted by such players as 2006 Club Player of The Year Peter Sciascia from Avalon, Samoan Sevens specialist Uale Mai from Wainuiomata and Brendan Watt, returning from a stint in Taranaki.?

Tawa's last four seasons have been consistent, if not threatening. They have made the Jubilee Cup round all four times but have ended the first round no higher than seventh on each of these occasions. As always they bring a fleet of dangerous backs to the competition who regularly excite, including familiar names such as Jon Masaga, Willie Lafaele, Vice Saletele and Junior Togia, plus the returning Jeff Makepelu from Norths.

In other games, first round winners OBU, Northern United, Wainuiomata, Petone and Upper Hutt all have home games in week two. OBU play Poneke at their home-away-from-home Nairnville Park with the Basin Reserve still in use as a first class cricket venue, Norths host Oriental-Rongotai at Porirua Park, Wainui host Avalon at William Jones Park, while the Wests Roosters travel to the Petone Recreation Ground and Hutt Old Boys Marist take on 2005 champions Upper Hutt at Maidstone Park.

Please remember kick-off times in all games this weekend are at 2.30 pm, due to the Hurricanes v Sharks Rebel Sport Super 14 fixture at Westpac Stadium. So get to the ground early to support your team.? Remember to take last year's rugby rulebook to the games as the club rugby season is not being played under the Experimental Law Variations.

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