By PETER JESSUP
The Wests Tigers' junior development scheme includes several players with a New Zealand background and the club is keen to dig up more like Benji Marshall.
That's part of the reason for shifting their game against the Warriors to Jade Stadium in Christchurch.
Though club chief executive Steve Noyce admits the merged club's two home grounds, Campbelltown from the Wests Magpies and Leichhardt from the Balmain Tigers, have "lots of olde-worlde charm", the larger venue offered more financial gain.
A major reason for the shift was to expose the younger players to a different approach, with different people in a different city.
"It all helps them to mature," Noyce says.
The players are impressed by Jade and its facilities.
The management has also been heartened by Christchurch's acceptance of the Tigers, and with ticket sales indicating a crowd of 15,000 - weather permitting - the experiment will be repeated for the next two years.
That means the Warriors will have three extra "home" games each season - the Bulldogs and Raiders in Wellington and now Wests Tigers in Christchurch.
The Tigers will be difficult opponents. Their forward pack is tough and experienced. Todd Payten and John Skandalis are sure to make ground and hooker Darren Senter is a smart runner of the game.
The Warriors have an advantage in the halves. Stacey Jones hit his best form of the season last weekend, with Lance Hohaia also looking sharp.
But their go-forward is not as assured, with the inconsistent Iafeta Paleaaesina and under-performing Mark Tookey in a new front row.
Richard Villasanti needs to lead.
The visitors' outside backs carry the most danger. The combination of former Parramatta team-mates Jason Moodie and Brett Hodgson has been hyper-productive for the Tigers in recent games and the pair have the pace to score length-of-the-field tries so a tight defensive line becomes critical for the Warriors.
Tigers forward Scott Sattler was yesterday confirmed out with a hamstring injury.
The Warriors had no injury worries.
It's a big test for the side after the win over Canberra, and a big test for new coach Tony Kemp. Curiously, he has led the team twice before against the Tigers - for 28-12 and 32-16 wins in 2002 and last year respectively while head coach Daniel Anderson was preparing their finals programme.
Kemp, after three NRL games in charge, comes up against the NRL's most experienced coach in Tim Sheens, with 456 games (231 wins, 214 losses, 11 drawn) for a 56 per cent record that includes three premierships with Canberra and nine finals series.
Bronson Harrison, 18, is one of the Tigers' young Kiwi prospects. His parents, like those of centre Dene Halatau, moved to Sydney when he was young and Harrison grew through the junior leagues at Balmain; Halatau at Parramatta.
Harrison came off the bench for the NSW under-18s against Queensland in the curtainraiser to State of Origin One and scored a try.
The 1.83cm, 98kg centre/lock/second-rower has a big future.
New Zealanders Kim Uasi, Moarangi Chase, Hermann Ratzlaff, Joe Harris and Sam Moa are at Keebra Park State High School on the Gold Coast, where Benji Marshall was on a scholarship.
When the NZ Schoolboys side played Australian Schoolboys last year, Moa represented his homeland and Marshall was one of eight in the Australian team with New Zealand links.
The school has its own talent scouts. Boys in the 15-17 age group are offered educational scholarships that require performance in the classroom as well as on the field.
* North Harbour has been confirmed as venue for the October Kiwis-Kangaroos match after the other bidder Waikato Stadium withdrew its approach because of a potential clash with rugby.
Jade Stadium, 4.30pm, tomorrow
WARRIORS
Brent Webb
Henry Fa'afili
Vinnie Anderson
Manu Vatuvei
Justin Murphy
Lance Hohaia
Stacey Jones
Iafeta Paleaaesina
Monty Betham (c)
Mark Tookey
Richard Villasanti
Awen Guttenbeil
Wairangi Koopu
Reserves: Louis Anderson, Karl Temata, Epalahame Lauaki, Tevita Latu, Evarn Tuimavave.
TIGERS
Brett Hodgson
Jason Moodie
Dene Halatau
Shane Elford
Daniel Fitzhenry
John Wilson
Keiran Kerr
Todd Payten
Darren Senter (c)
John Skandalis
Ben Galea
A. Laffranchi
Chris Heighington
Reserves: Robbie Mears, Bronson Harrison, Bryce Gibbs, Luke Covell, Liam Fulton.
(One player to be omitted from each of the teams.)
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