The second, between GT Shearing Waikohu and Contract Consultants High School Old Boys, starts at 3pm.
A scheduled gap between games will allow for overtime and for equipment and “fan zones” to be sanitised.
The union has given 100 tickets to each team and provided fan zones at separate ends of the field to comply with Covid-19 Level 2 restrictions.
The free tickets are limited, and some teams have already given out their allocation.
Most teams gave players first choice of tickets for family and friends before offering them to their fans.
Supporters can watch only their team’s game and must contact their club to get a ticket as “door sales” will not be available.
For those who miss out on tickets, the games will be livestreamed.
Tomorrow’s game is a repeat of last Saturday’s fixture for YMP and Ngatapa. Last weekend they battled until the final whistle in a thriller that YMP won 43-41 after the score originally given — 43-all — was found to be incorrect.
YMP assistant coach Colin Skudder said his team had been focusing on their discipline this week.
He said last weekend they gave Ngatapa a lot of front-foot ball with a constant string of penalties for infringements in and around the ruck.
“We gave Ngatapa a lot of metres. This week we’d rather be safe than sorry, taking half a step back (from the offside line).”
He believes YMP have an advantage in their backs and says they plan to use it by recycling the ball quickly.
Ngatapa coach Stephen Hickey said the teams got an opportunity to “figure each other out” last weekend, setting the stage for an exciting match.
“Both teams are evenly matched, and chances are that on the day it will come down to who takes those opportunities.”
He said Ngatapa were eager to get out on the field and prove they had what it took to be a championship-winning team.
“It’s what you train for all year, playoff rugby.”
Ngatapa expect a similar game-plan to last week from their opponents, and they will need to make good first-up tackles to shut down YMP’s strong outside backs.
Hickey said the players were excited to get back out in front of their supporters, sponsors and family members.
“They’re as much a part of the club as we are.”
Waikohu have been on a tear this season, dropping only one match, to YMP, on their way to topping the leaderboard.
Just two weeks ago, HSOB lost to a convincing Waikohu side 48-3, and coach Danny Boyle knows this will be a challenging game for his team.
He said Waikohu were a class act, on and off the field, but he could see a path to victory.
It would take a full “22-man effort” and patience in both defence and attack to build up the pressure needed to crack the Waikohu line, he said.
“Waikohu taught us a lesson last time, but I don’t think that was one of our better days,” Boyle said.
“The key thing is to play without making mistakes . . . everyone needs to get on the field and contribute.”
The Waikohu forwards are big and strong while their backs are quick and agile. They have talent from 1 through to 22 and oodles of confidence going into the semifinal but it’s all about who shows up tomorrow.
Waikohu’s form in the last weeks of the regular season went up a gear.
They had convincing victories over OBM and HSOB, but skipper Geoff Pari said that was behind them now.
“On the day it’s a different beast . . . it’s whoever turns up to play,” he said.
His team were looking forward to the game and to continuing to show they were the team to beat.
“It’s do-or-die footy . . . we’ve been there before, on both sides of the ledger.”
