Stewart hopes victory marks his 150th match

MIDFIELD ROCK: Central midfield back Lee Stewart (with ball) is always a handful. PHOTO/FILE

CENTRAL second five-eighth Lee Stewart knows he's on a "mission impossible" in Hawke's Bay's premier club rugby competition but he's prepared to give it a go.

"I want to catch up and pass Warwick Slingsby who has played more than 200 games for us. However, he keeps playing and that's one of the reasons our team is doing so well ... there is a good mix of us older heads and promising youngsters," Stewart explained.

A former Hawke's Bay Secondary Schools and under-16 rep who had three years in the Napier Boys' High School 1st XV, Stewart, will play his 150th match for Northfuels Central when they host MAC in a ninth-round Tui Maddison Trophy fixture at Waipukurau today.

The sheep and beef farmer first played for Central in 2005 and could have reached this milestone sooner had he not had a two-year stint with the Lewes club in Britain in 2008 and 2009. Stewart, 28, is confident his feat will be celebrated with a victory at Central Park .

"MAC beat us 43-10 last time but that was during the duck shooting season and we were a bit sleepy that day," he said.

Stewart ranked former Magpies and Havelock North second five-eighth Davis Norman as the toughest midfielder he has marked during his club career. Norman, who played 67 games for the Magpies from 1998 to 2007, boasted a style similar to Stewart's.

He was strong on the charge in a short-game approach but equally at home in an expansive game and a rock on defence.

"The game has changed a lot over the years. You get a lot of younger nippy blokes in the midfield now ... I miss the older version of rugby a bit," Stewart said. "I've been a big fan of grassroots rugby and I would like to thank all the volunteers including referees I've had over the years," he added.

Stewart and his teammates might find MAC tougher than expected. The visitors will miss the services of new Magpie Lewis Marshall but will have their Saracens trio of prop Mason Kean, former New Zealand under-20s winger Penikolo Latu and No 8-lock Everard Reid.

Hawke's Bay Insurances Limited Napier Old Boys Marist prop Mike King will play his 50th match when his side hosts K9 Petfoods Clive at Park Island. King, 38, played his first match in the late 1990s for the team as a second five eighth and his second in 2013.

NOBM should win by 25 points to keep their semifinal hopes alive. They will be hoping Progressive Meats Havelock North beat Carters Frame and Truss Taradale at Taradale. If Taradale lose they miss out on the semis. Defending champions Havelock North, who should win by nine, could miss out on a home semifinal if they lose.

Tanalised Napier Pirate Rugby and Sports should win their home game against Tamatea by 35 to secure a home semifinal.

Should Ansin & Monteith Hastings Rugby and Sports win against Tech Group of Companies Napier Technical at Whitmore Park, and they are capable by at least seven, they could also score a home semifinal if the villagers lose.