The Struggle For Third Continues

Round 5 Preview Round five of the Hardham Cup gives Oriental Rongotai their chance to cement their spot in the top four. Coming up against third place Johnsonville, Ories will be looking to overtake them on the points board in order to better their chances of making it in to the semi?s.

In other games Old Boys University will play what could potentially be their hardest encounter of the Hardham Cup facing off against Hutt Old Boys Marist on Saturday. OBU head the Hardham Cup points table, closely followed by HOBM. Both teams have won every match of the cup with a nail biter forecast for Saturday. Poneke take on Marist St Pat?s with MSP desperately looking for their first win of the cup. Petone, who sit comfortably in the middle of the table, will play Northern United, who still have yet to gain a point in the competition.

The feature match is between Ories and Johnsonville at the Polo Ground this weekend. This match is important for both teams as the fight for a place in the top four continues. Ories just managed to scrape through and beat MSP 22-17 last weekend, which put them back in the hunt and currently sitting in fourth place. Johnsonville demolished Petone 52-20 last weekend, and now have three wins under their belt. Both teams will have confidence after their recent victories and will be looking to continue their winning ways in round five. Ories will have the upper hand going into the game, having beaten Johnsonville 28-9 in their Swindale Shield encounter.

Johnsonville will be looking to use such players as top points scorer Corey Burt to help them win the second encounter between the two sides. Ories will again try to use their talented back line whose skill and pace could be difficult to stop on Saturday.