Nerves are for the young and restless - the uninitiated trying to jostle for places and create an impression in the higher echelons of sport.
Adam Cowan is way past that phase, even if he is going to play for Kinetic Electrical Hawke's Bay United against his home franchise, Youngheart Manawatu, tomorrow.
"I've played too many games to be nervous," says the 122-game veteran of ASB Premiership football games, before the 2pm kick off at the Bluewater Stadium, Napier.
A mercurial midfielder, Cowan, who led Wairarapa United to Chatham Cup (knockout) victory against Bluewater Napier City Rovers last winter, will know how the Stu Jacobs-coached Manawatu will approach the round match at Park Island after both sides suffered crushing losses a fortnight ago.
The 30-year-old commercial photographer knows his home boys from the other side of the Gorge cannot be underestimated on their last outing.
"You'll have to watch them because they have good players, and in the last game they had a player sent off so ... that didn't help."
His Wairarapa teammate, Pita Rabo, of Fiji, will be in the line-up, but it appears ex-Bay United striker Seule Soromon isn't in what appears to be another summer of impasse when he will not be playing unless he receives some form of remuneration to travel from Masterton to Palmerston North to train and play.
Understandably, Cowan, who commutes from Palmy to here to train twice a week while staying with mate and Bay goalkeeper Richard Gillespie, is preoccupied with what his new franchise can do and not with the old franchise, whom he served loyally for six seasons.
"Bill [Robertson] will step up, so we've got him to stop them," he says of his skipper, who served a carry-over suspension from last summer, thus missing out on the 3-0 defeat to Waitakere United.
Echoing the sentiments of coach Matt Chandler, Cowan reckons the first game was a poor reflection of a Bay United itching to show their worth.
Gillespie is out with a medial ligament injury, offering back-up keeper Shaun Peta his early start to the 2011-12 season. Matt Gould is on the bench.
Cowan adheres to the mantra of securing a maiden play-off berth in the Bay franchise's history in the premiership. Indubitably he wouldn't have signed to play here if he wasn't sold on the franchise's bid to fulfil its goal.
Cowan was close to signing for Waitakere United but "it didn't work out". "It was more for me to be playing O-League before I get too old," he says, adding he had played in the old five-day tournament format for Manawatu in a year when Auckland City won.
The great leveller was proximity to wife Sarah, who is expecting their first child in Palmy North soon.
His dissatisfaction with the YoungHearts administration is well documented.
"It was more behind the scenes, but the club is not great, so I took the contract to Napier."
He reckons his trip twice a week to Park Island makes it interesting and something to aspire for.
"We have a young side but they are a good bunch of boys who want to learn and are keen to play for Hawke's Bay," Cowan said.
Veteran Chris Greatholder, of Maycenvale United, is also out with an injury, but striker Milos Nikolic will make his first appearance after sitting out round one with an injury.
Fellow striker Hamish Watson, of Lower Hutt City, is also in the mix for the first goal of this summer.
Coach Jacobs has thrown the gauntlet down to Rabo and Barry Lewis although he'll miss Pablo Moya, who collected a red card against Canterbury United in round one.
It may raise a few eyebrows, but the Bay have beaten Youngheart only twice at home - 2-1 last summer and 4-3 in 2004.
In their 18 encounters, Manawatu have a 9-6 advantage with three stalemates, although the Bay won both home and away last summer.
Manawatu's last "derby" victory was in 2009 when Soromon scored the only goal to break the impasse.
MATCH FACTS
Who: Hawke's Bay United v YoungHeart Manawatu.
Where: Park Island, Napier.
When: Tomorrow.
Kick off: 2pm.
Referee: Chris Kerr.
Head to head: Played 18, Hawke's Bay 6 wins, Manawatu 9 wins, 3 draws.
TEAMS:
Hawke's Bay United squad list: 26- Shaun Peta (GK), 2-Fergus Neil, 3-Alex Barlow, 5-Bill Robertson (c), 6-Stephen Hindmarch, 7-Matt Hastings, 8-Adam Cowan, 9-Milos Nikolic, 10-Sam Margetts, 11-Conor Tinnion, 12-Adam Chandler (A), 13-Luke Chapman, 14-Danny Wilson, 17-Tom Biss (A), 18-Hamish Watson, 19-Chris McIvor, 21-Josh Margetts, 30-Matt Gould (GK).
Coach: Matt Chandler.
YoungHeart Manawatu squad list: 1-Rhyss Keane (GK), 2-Nobuyishi Ishi, 3-Josh Chettleburgh, 4-Jamie O'Connor, 5-Allan Keddie, 6-Matt Kennedy, 7-Pita Rabo, 8-Nathan Cooksley, 10-Joachim Rande, 11-Cory Chettleburgh (c), 12-Jimmy Haidakis, 16-Michael Fraser (A), 17-Jordan Martens (A), 18-Barry Lewis, 19-Matt Borren (GK), 25-Jono Steele.
Coach: Stu Jacobs.