Playoff spots in the bag for leading teams if they win this weekend

Above: HOBM and Ories players soaring high in last week's final regular season match of the year at the Hutt Recreation Ground.If HOBM beat Poneke in this weekend's penulimtate round of Jubliee Cup matches they'll be back there again soon to host a home semi-final.

Leading duo Hutt Old Boys Marist and Tawa just need to win this weekend and they will both be in the Jubilee Cup semi-finals in a fortnight, while Upper Hutt will carry themselves, Northern United and the Wellington Axemen into the Premier 2 playoffs regardless of other results if they beat Johnsonville in sixth round Hardham Cup clashes on Saturday.

In the Jubilee Cup, 2007 champions Hutt Old Boys Marist can also qualify top for the semi-finals with a week to spare if they earn a bonus point win over Poneke and Tawa fail to bag maximum points from their encounter with Marist St Pat’s.

Hutt Old Boys Marist and Poneke square off at Kilbirnie Park and Tawa and Marist St Pat’s meet across the road at Evans Bay Park in two key eastern suburbs battlegrounds on Saturday.

Poneke, who are sixth on eight points have everything to play for against the Eagles. They must win, and preferably with a bonus point, to have any chance of making the semi-finals.

A bonus point win for Poneke would draw them level with current fifth placed MSP on 13 points, and could keep them in the hunt for the semi-finals in the final week pending other results involving Oriental-Rongotai and Old Boys University.

However, a win for MSP over Tawa would likely be curtains for Poneke’s playoff chances and a bonus point win for the Red Machine would mean lights out for Poneke regardless of what they do over the last two weeks as MSP would progress ahead of Poneke by virtue of their 23-6 win over them in round three if they finished equal on points.

Poneke’s opposition, HOBM, want to maintain their Jubilee Cup winning run that has seen them unbeaten through five matches so far including a 28-16 win over Ories in their final match at home last week.? The Eagles, who missed out on making the playoffs last year, will take no prisoners at Kilbirnie Park.

Poneke are coming off their first win of the second round, a 41-27 win over Petone, and regardless of MSP’s fortunes against Tawa, will know a bonus point win is a minimum requirement given their last round assignment to come against Wainuiomata at William Jones Park. The Swindale Shield match-up earlier in the year was a 28-18 home victory for the Eagles over Poneke.

A week after coming out on top of a ‘must-win’ MSP really needs to do it all again if they want to defend their title when they host Tawa across the road. If MSP lose, and all of the other three games go to form, then their defence would be over. A win however will keep them very much alive with a home game against bottom side Petone in the last round.

For Tawa a win is needed to keep them ahead of both Ories and OBU for the right to a home semi, while a loss could see them potentially outside the semi places come full time and needing to beat HOBM at home in the last round. Tawa will be eager to regain their winning momentum after their 28-31 loss to OBU last Saturday.

In the Swindale Shield, MSP and Tawa played out an entertaining 29-all draw at Lyndhurst, while last year’s Jubilee Cup match was a 20-13 win for MSP at Evans Bay.

MSP fans will also be aware that their side hasn’t lost to Tawa since April 2006. They have won nine and drawn one of their last 10 clashes since then.

OBU are third on 15 points and they head to the Petone Rec to take on the Villagers. The Billy Goats will know that their win over Tawa last week made them a good chance of hosting a semi-final, but will need to account for their opposition this Saturday to keep that a reality.

For Petone, now out-of-contention, this is their last home game for the season so will all be about pride. OBU won the Swindale matchup 63-28 in a game played at Wellington College in the club/college round. Lock Chris ‘Bushy’ Molenaar is also set to play his 200th game for Petone this Saturday, so will want to celebrate the milestone with victory.

Ories host Wainuiomata at the Polo Ground with both sides coming off losses. Ories remain in a semis spot despite the loss to HOBM, but a second loss in succession could leave them on the outside looking in if MSP beat Tawa.

For Wainuiomata they are still alive mathematically but like Poneke need a bonus-point win and results to go their way both this week and next to make the semi-finals for the second year running. Ories have won the last three matches between the two teams; 33-26 at William Jones earlier this year, 11-6 at the same venue in the Jubilee Cup last year and 45-17 in the last year’s semi-final.

Hardham Cup

All the current top four sides are in action against one of their counterparts, with the Johnsonville v Upper Hutt match at Maidstone Park the key clash of the round.

For the hosts a win will secure them a home semi-final and keep their eight-match unbeaten run going; while for Johnsonville a win this week would secure them Premier status for 2014 no matter what else happens.

Norths host Wellington at Porirua Park. Norths come into the game having dealt to the Roosters 52-3, while the Axemen squeaked past OBU B 13-10 at Nairnville Park. The likelihood is that the winner of this game will host a semi-final, and the strong chance is that it will be these two teams facing off in that game wherever it is played.

The implications for these two matches alone are well worth watching.The third match that all club rugby fans need to keep an eye on pits the sixth placed Wests Roosters against the fifth placed OBU B at The Cage at Ian Galloway Park.

For their hopes of making the semi-finals it is a must win for both teams - but especially so for the Roosters who have been poor the last two weeks and who’s Premier status hangs by a thread.

Simply put, either a Wests loss or a Johnsonville bonus point win over Upper Hutt will end the Roosters’ continuous association as Premier club since their formation 30 years ago.

It has shades of 2006, when Wests and Johnsonville finished the Hardham Cup equal on 23 points but Wests saved their Premier status by virtue of their 27-26 win over Johnsonville in the first week of the competition.

The final match-up sees the battle of winless sides when Avalon host Rimutaka at Fraser Park. Avalon are still mathematically alive but need to win and win well, but Rimutaka are consigned to a return to Senior 1 for 2014 and their only interest is if they can finally win a game in 2013, having gone 0-16 so far.

Senior 1 Ed Chaney Cup

Senior 1 Ed Chaney Cup action this week has leaders Paremata-Plimmerton making the trip into town to face Poneke at Kilbirnie Park at 1.15 pm.

Second-placed Tawa is just across the road at Evans Bay facing MSP and could go top with a win and a Pare-Plim loss. The third 1.15 kick-off has bottom-placed Upper Hutt hosting third-placed Wainuiomata at Maidstone Park.

The other two matches have slightly earlier kickoffs. At 1.00 pm at the Polo Ground mid-season promoted sides Oriental-Rongotai and Hutt Old Boys Marist clash, while at 12.45 Petone and Norths meet at the Petone Rec.

With this competition tightly bunched and three weeks after this still to be played, the make-up of the semi-finals is anyone’s guess.

Senior 2 HD Morgan Memorial Cup

The feature game in the Senior 2 HD Morgan Memorial Cup competition has frontrunners the Wests Roosters and second-placed OBU meeting in the early game at The Cage. The winner of this game will likely all-but qualify for the semi-finals with three rounds to play after this.

Unbeaten Avalon, who sit third, host Stokes Valley, while fourth-placed Norths are visited by bottom side MSP.? Wainuiomata visit Poneke while Petone hosts Johnsonville.

All games are 1.15 pm kickoffs, bar the Petone v Johnsonville game which is at 12.45 pm.

Lower grades

The Women’s Gala Day on the artificial turf at Te Whaea has been rescheduled for Saturday, after the original date was postponed due to the southerly storm three weeks ago. First up at 12.00 pm sees the clash between unbeaten sides Norths and Oriental-Rongotai in what promises to be a great display of the Women’s game. That’s followed at 2.00 pm by Avalon and OBU, with the 4.00 pm fixture pitting the MSP-Poneke side against Wainuiomata.

John E Kelly Colts Division 1 action has unbeaten OBU take on bottom side Ories at Polo at 1.15 pm, second-placed HOBM hosting the young Axemen at the Hutt Rec at the same time, while Petone and Norths clash on the Petone Rec at 3.00 pm. The final game of the round sees the two sides promoted at mid-season – Johnsonville and Poneke – meet at Helston Park at 3.00 pm.

The lightweight Under 85kg Paul Potiki Shield games have Wellington hosting the OBU Spartans at Hataitai Park at 1.15pm and the OBU Bunnies and MSP Reds meeting at Newlands Park at 3.00 pm. The final game has Eastbourne visiting the MSP Blues at Prince of Wales Park at 3.00 pm, while Tawa have the bye.

Finally in Senior 3 matches the only three games on the schedule have Ories hosting Wellington, the two HOBM teams meet at the Hutt Rec, and the artificial at Maidstone hosts the local derby between Upper Hutt and Rimutaka at 12pm.

Top qualifiers St Pat’s Silverstream and second placed Wellington College have this weekend off college Premier 1 rugby, while four of the other six schools contest the first weekend of post-season play.Third placed finisher Scots College will play sixth placed St Pat's Town and fourth and fifth placed Naenae and Rongotai Colleges.