New South Wales Rugby

2009 Tooheys New Shute Shield :: Round 13 Preview

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Friday, 26 June 2009
NSWRU Media Unit

Lote Tuqiri scored a try in his first match for West Harbour since 2004.

Lote Tuqiri scored a try in his first match for West Harbour since 2004. [2009 Tooheys New Shute Shield Round 10 - Southern Districts v West Harbour; Forshaw Rugby Park; 30/5/09]

HSBC Waratahs and Wallaby backs Tuqiri and Tahu have been named in the West Harbour side to meet Gordon in the ABC TV Game of the Day, while 15 Super 14 squad members will be on show at Coogee Oval when Randwick host Warringah.

In other matches, first plays last when Manly travel to St Marys to play Penrith, Norths have a must win game against the Rebels, Sydney University are hot favourites against Parramatta while fifth meets sixth at T.G. Millner when Eastwood host Easts.

WEST HARBOUR (8th) V GORDON (3rd) at Concord Oval (ABC TV Game, 3:10pm)
Lote Tuqiri and Timana Tahu are the headline acts at Concord Oval tomorrow when West Harbour take on Gordon.

The HSBC Waratahs backs are expected to attract a strong crowd, with many spectators sure to attend the ABC TV Game of the Day before heading down the road to ANZ Stadium for the Test between Australia and France.

The Pirates have followed up a six-match winning streak with two straight losses and have slipped from second to eighth position.

Gordon continues to stay near the pointy end of the competition, however they have played far better than their 29-12 victory over Parramatta last weekend and could be vulnerable.

Josh Keil has moved back into the No.10 jersey where he started the season for the Highlanders, while Dave Harvey switches to fullback. Western Force, Australian Sevens and Australian U20s flyer Dane Haylett-Petty is back on the wing for Gordon after scoring a hat-trick against Souths in round four.

West Harbour: 1.Campese Ma'afu, 2. Todd Pearce, 3. Salesi Ma'afu; 4. Damien Lloyd, 5. Andrew Clyne; 6. Isaiah Pine [c], 7. Dan Thomas, 8. Pelea Afu; 9. Steve Massey, 10. Jai Ayoub; 11. Lote Tuqiri, 12. Metui Maile, 13. Timana Tahu, 14. Tito Mua; 15. Dave Paurini.
Gordon: 1.Tobius Gukibau, 2. Nath Nicol, 3. Marty Plokstys; 4. Ed Gower [c], 5. Kingsley Seale; 6. Paulie Tuala, 7. Craig Thomas, 8. Viliame Ratu; 9. Vinnie Byrne, 10. Josh Kiel; 11. Terry Preston, 12. Mark Preston, 13. Matt McDougall, 14. Dane Haylett-Petty; 15. Dave Harvey.
Referee: Steve Walsh
Last Meeting: 2009 Round 1 - Gordon 41 d West Harbour 22 at Chatswood Oval

PENRITH (12th) V MANLY (1st) at St Marys Leagues Stadium (3:00pm)
HSBC Waratahs No.8 Wycliff Palu will have his first hit-out since the end of the Super 14 when he lines up for Manly against Penrith at St Marys Leagues Stadium.

Palu finished the season with a broken hand and will look to impress Wallaby selectors with a strong performance against the Emus after recovering from surgery in May.

The Marlins held out Eastwood by three points in torrid conditions last weekend, and while their assignment this week looks a lot easier, there are few bigger road trips in the competition than from the Northern Beaches to St Marys.
Penrith: 1. Dave Coventry, 2. Myles Hunkin, 3. Nick Barber; 4. Liam Winton, 5. Mosese Makasini; 6. Michael Paulo, 7. Rob Carlson [c], 8. Joey Afualo; 9. Jeremy Su'a, 10. Jono Rolfe; 11. Nua Alone, 12. Luke Cross, 13. Lachlan Porteous, 14. Solomona Fainifo; 15. Zeb Filise.
Manly: 1. Eddie Aholelei, 2. Elvis Taione, 3. James Lakepa; 4. Will Munsie, 5. Dylan Sigg; 6. Daniel Collins, 7. Chris Westernek, 8. Wycliff Palu; 9. Chris Cottee, 10. Josh Gamgee; 11. Luke Johnson, 12. Alex Miles, 13. Tyrone Smith, 14. Leon Bott; 15. Adam D'Arcy.
Referee: Angus Gardner
Last Meeting: 2009 Round 1 - Manly 45 d Penrith 7 at Manly Oval

EASTWOOD (6th) V EASTERN SUBURBS (5th) at T.G. Millner Field (3:00pm)
Eastern Suburbs scored a solid victory over Eastwood in round two however tomorrow's clash at T.G. Millner Field should be a much tighter affair if their positions on the table are anything to go by.

The Beasties sit in fifth place on the competition table, a solitary point ahead of Eastwood who lead a trio of teams on 34 points but remain in the top six on points difference.

Australian U20s flyhalf Matt Toomua was named in the Easts No.10 jersey earlier in the week but has since been replaced by Ben Ward, with Nathan Lowe moving into the centres. HSBC Waratahs hooker and Junior World Cup captain Damien Fitzpatrick is expected to play for Eastwood.

Eastwood: 1. Simon Norris, 2. David Feketi, 3. Matt Dunning; 4. Ben Hand, 5. Phil Mathers; 6. Locky McCaffrey, 7. Ben Coridas, 8. Hugh Perrett [c]; 9. Chris O'Young, 10. James Foote; 11. Mark Frost, 12. Chris Donnelly, 13. Tim Bennetts, 14. John Grant; 15. Ben Batger.
Eastern Suburbs: 1. Mike Ross, 2. Huia Edmonds, 3. Rob McMickan; 4. Richard Stanford, 5. Lee Morley; 6. Ed Brenac, 7. Fergus Dorney, 8. Tom Egan [c]; 9. Luke Irwin, 10. Ben Ward; 11. Gavin Debartolo, 12. Nathan Lowe, 13. Anton LaVin, 14. Joe Azar; 15. Pat Dellit.
Referee: Steve Hardy
Last Meeting: 2009 Round 1 - Eastern Suburbs 37 d Eastwood 15 at Woollahra Oval

SYDNEY UNIVERSITY (2nd) V PARRAMATTA (11th) at University Oval No.1 (3:00pm)
Defending champions Sydney University last week returned to their best form and will hope to keep it in top gear when they host Parramatta at University Oval No.1.

In wet conditions, the Students still managed to post the biggest margin of the 2009 season with a 67-0 victory over Penrith. However the Two Blues gave Uni a bit of a scare in round two and if they can dig deep might stay in the game for longer than many expect them to.

Dan Kelly gets an opportunity in the flyhalf jersey for the Students while HSBC Junior Waratah Steve Mafi moves from the forwards into the centres.

Sydney University: 1. Jerry Yanuyanutawa, 2. Ben Roberts, 3. Pat Ryan; 4. Hugh Hawkins, 5. Ben McCalman; 6. Dave Dennis [c], 7. Pat McCutcheon, 8. David Haigh; 9. Scott Stumbles, 10. Dan Kelly; 11. Nick Edwards, 12. Tom Carter, 13. Mitch Inman, 14. Alfi Mafi; 15. Nathan Trist.
Parramatta: 1. Lui Sakaria, 2. Scott Podmore, 3. Matt Borg; 4. Sam Evalu, 5. Ryan Aniseko; 6. Andrew Cox [c], 7. Jeremy Bird, 8. Winney Paulo; 9. Aaron Mattin, 10. Areta Lama; 11. Junior Kolikata, 12. Piripi Ranga, 13. Steve Mafi, 14. Oscar Fraser; 15. Ben Borg.
Referee: Andrew Lees
Last Meeting: 2009 Round 1 - Sydney University 29 d Parramatta 14 at Granville Park

RANDWICK (4th) V WARRINGAH (7th) at Coogee Oval (3:00pm)
Along with the West Harbour-Gordon clash, Randwick's meeting with Warringah is set to be one of the feature matches of round nine.

These sides have played out some interesting encounters in recent times. At Coogee Oval last year, Ratu Nasiganiyavi scored four tries in a 59-0 romp, while the Rats were unlucky not to get home in the first week of the 2008 semi-finals. In round one, Warringah easily accounted for Randwick at Pittwater Rugby Park, however the Galloping Greens field a much more formidable line-up this week.

The stars will be on show in this encounter with Randwick fielding Wallabies Sekope Kepu and Stephen Hoiles, HSBC Waratahs Ratu Nasiganiyavi and Ben Mowen, as well as Brumbies Patrick Phibbs and Francis Fainifo.

On the other hand, Pek Cowan returns after his Test debut last week to bolster the 'Rat Pack' which also includes Super 14 stars Luke Holmes, Pat O'Connor, Chris Thomson and Beau Robinson. Brett Sheehan, Josh Holmes and Haig Sare along with Pat McCabe who was recently elevated to a Super 14 contract with the Brumbies, feature in a star-studded Warringah backline.

Randwick's top four position is on the line in this encounter, with a loss likely to see them drop out of the top six entirely. A win for Warringah would put them in a finals position and separate them from the three sides congested on 34 competition points.

Randwick: 1. Sekope Kepu, 2. Atonio Halangahu [c], 3. Lotu Taukeiaho; 4. Steven Brennan, 5. Tim Maxwell; 6. Ben Mowen; 7. Rodney Voullaire, 8. Stephen Hoiles; 9. Patrick Phibbs, 10. Tim Walsh; 11. Ratu Nasiganiyavi, 12. Shaun Foley, 13. Tim Wright, 14. Francis Fainifo; 15. Marshall Milroy.
Warringah: 1. Pek Cowan, 2. Luke Holmes, 3. Dan Barnard; 4. Pat O'Connor, 5. Chris Thomson; 6. Brent Murphy, 7. Beau Robinson [c], 8. Trevor Richardson; 9. Brett Sheehan, 10. Brock McGarity; 11. Jordon Macey, 12. Josh Holmes, 13. Haig Sare, 14. Dylan Smouha; 15. Pat McCabe.
Referee: Daniel Cheever
Last Meeting: 2009 Round 1 - Warringah 31 d Randwick 10 at Pittwater Rugby Park

SOUTHERN DISTRICTS V NORTHERN SUBURBS at Forshaw Rugby Park (3:00pm)
While this match may not have much bearing on the outcome of the Tooheys New Shute Shield, the Southern Districts-Northern Suburbs encounter at Forshaw Rugby Park could be one of the closest matches of the round.

The Rebels were edged by just one point in round two, however since then the Shoremen have won just one more match than Souths.

An injury to Sam Norton-Knight will see in-form Andrew Smith shift to fullback, while Under 20s Corey Brown and Sam Latunipulu return for Norths.

On paper, Souths possibly have the edge with an all-Super 14 front row and a Test prop (Guy Shepherdson) on the bench, Force centre Josh Tatupu and young gun Kane Douglas in the second row.

Southern Districts: 1. Nic Henderson, 2. John Ulugia, 3. Dan Palmer; 4. Matt Trouville, 5. Kane Douglas; 6. Jono Hayes, 7. Tim McGann, 8. Andrew Maloney; 9. Nathan Sievert, 10. Zac Mullane; 11. Andrew Barrett, 12. Josh Tatupu, 13. Chris Kerr, 14. Jackson Mullane; 15. Matt Raftrey.
Northern Suburbs: 1. Nick Lah, 2. Ryan Dalziel, 3. Tai Vea; 4. James Fitzgerald, 5. Pat Maile; 6. Matt Lamont, 7. Sam Latunipulu, 8. Al McFarland; 9. Sam Carson, 10. Chris Burnett; 11. Corey Brown, 12. Chris Moore, 13. George Hughes, 14. Anthony Shortis; 15. Andrew Smith.
Referee: James Scholtens
Last Meeting: 2009 Round 1 - Northern Suburbs 22 d Southern Districts 21 at North Sydney Oval

REPRESENTATIVE PLAYERS FEATURED THIS ROUND
HSBC Waratahs: Matt Dunning (Eastwood), Ben Batger (Eastwood), Dave Dennis (Sydney University), Sekope Kepu (Randwick), Ratu Nasiganiyavi (Randwick), Ben Mowen (Randwick), Lote Tuqiri* (West Harbour), Timana Tahu* (West Harbour), Chris Thomson (Warringah), Beau Robinson (Warringah), Josh Holmes (Warringah), Dan Palmer (Southern Districts), Wycliff Palu (Manly)
HSBC Junior Waratahs (Professional): Ben Coridas (Eastwood), Pat McCutcheon (Sydney University), Steve Mafi (Parramatta), Jeremy Su'a (Penrith), Kane Douglas (Southern Districts)
Brumbies: Ben Hand (Eastwood), Jerry Yanuyanutawa (Sydney University), Alfi Mafi (Sydney University), Tyrone Smith (Manly), Huia Edmonds (Eastern Suburbs), Stephen Hoiles (Randwick), Patrick Phibbs (Randwick), Salesi Ma'afu (West Harbour), Nic Henderson (Southern Districts), Guy Shepherdson (Southern Districts, reserve), John Ulugia (Southern Districts)
Western Force: Chris O'Young (Eastwood), Richard Stanford (Eastern Suburbs), Luke Holmes (Warringah), Pat O'Connor (Warringah), Brett Sheehan (Warringah), Haig Sare (Warringah), Josh Tatupu (Southern Districts), Dane Haylett-Petty (Gordon), Pek Cowan* (Warringah)
Australian Sevens (2008/09): Dane Haylett-Petty (Gordon), Ben McCalman (Sydney University), Pat McCutcheon (Sydney University), Ben Mowen (Randwick), Tim Walsh (Randwick), Shaun Foley (Randwick), Francis Fainifo (Randwick), Ben Coridas (Eastwood)
Australian U20s: Kane Douglas (Southern Districts), Sam Latunipulu (Northern Suburbs), Corey Brown (Northern Suburbs), Dane Haylett-Petty (Gordon)
* Wallaby squad member

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