LEAGUE - Prodigal sons bring good form

The homecoming of a trio of prodigal sons to Portland Panthers has become an expensive gesture with soaring petrol prices, but it's helped transform the club's fortunes.
Dain Guttenbeil, Val McDonald junior and Stan Martin make the trip from Auckland every weekend to don the green jersey of Portland in the Whangarei Rugby League competition. Their reappearance at the club has coincided the club's return to winning ways.
"It's turned out a bit costly with gas now at $2.20 a litre, but we made a pledge to the club so we're going through with it," Guttenbeil said.
The main reason Guttenbeil made the commitment was for his grandfather Johnny Wells.
"He always enjoyed us coming up and playing past versus present games at the club, and we thought we'd jump on the present team for a season just to see how much he'd enjoy that," he said.
Regarded as something of an easybeat last season, Portland are the competition leaders at the halfway mark, making the club's turnaround close to incredible.
"There's a bit of self-belief at the club, it's not just because there's a couple of us coming up from Auckland to play, these fellows believe they can do it, they're taking it seriously this year and it's just good to be a part of it," Guttenbeil said.
Tomorrow, Portland take on old rivals Takahiwai, who will try and retake the lead in the competition - for Portland, it's a chance to beat Takahiwai for the first time since 1986.
With the competition expected to go right down to the wire, the mid-Northern derby between fourth-placed Kaikohe Lions and fifth-placed Moerewa Tigers, at Moerewa, is also vital to their title aspirations.
Kaikohe coach JJ Hepi said the club finally fielded their first-choice team on Saturday against Northern Wairoa and confidently predicted, if he could keep that line-up on the park, they would emerge well placed for the playoffs.
"I have no doubt that we will carry on and beat every team in the league this year because the only games we have lost, we've been short of players through injury," Hepi said.
Kaikohe won all their first round encounters, but came up just short against the top-three clubs Portland, Takahiwai and Ngawha.
The Bay Slayers face another tough challenge this weekend against a rested Hikurangi Stags at Tikipunga, while Marist make their second trip this season to play Ngawha Saints.