Senio keen to resume play with Northland

Two look-a-like brothers have been locked in a lifelong family feud to gain sibling rugby supremacy, but their latest competition seems to have taken an unexpected twist.
Last year Northland rugby halfback John Senio was playing while his injured brother Kevin was hobbling around on crutches instead of defending the Ranfurly Shield with Bay of Plenty.
Now John has acquired the crutches and Kevin is polishing his boots ready to play.
The two look-a-like brothers have been locked in a lifelong family feud to gain sibling rugby supremacy anyway, but their latest competition seems to have taken an unexpected twist.
On the same weekend Kevin Senio was in Sydney with the All Blacks, John Senio was ruled out of all rugby for three weeks at least after wrenching his hamstring and being carted from the field in an ambulance during Northland's opening Air New Zealand NPC match against Wellington in Whangarei on Saturday.
So instead of settling in to see if his older brother got a run at the Sydney Football Stadium on Saturday night, John Senio spent the evening with an ice pack strapped to his backside all night and was waiting on official diagnosis today to see when he might next play for Northland.
Last year Kevin broke his leg late in the season playing for Bay of Plenty and spent several months in recuperation.
"It wasn't quite what I had planned for the night," John Senio said of his icy overnight injury-treatment regime made all the worse by the fact that Northland lost to Wellington 47-23.
"I was thinking I might play the (Northland) game, head home and hopefully see my brother get a run for the All Blacks. But it is not as bad as I first thought, when it happened I thought that was it," he said.
The two Senio brothers have been rugby rivals of sorts since playing "carpet rugby that graduated to games on the back lawn" as children with John Senio following his older brother Kevin into the Kelston Boys High School first XV rugby team in Auckland.
Kevin played for Kelston Boys High in 1996 and John won a world schools title with the same school in 1998.
John Senio is hoping his injury is not quite as serious as his brother's though. The Manu Samoa international halfback was hoping for a favourable diagnosis today that might see him back in the Northland jersey again soon.
It adds yet more pressure to Northland's already dwindling halfback stocks this year, with former New Zealand Colts Rhyan Caine already out for the season, but had not sent too many alarm bells ringing with Northland coach Bruce Hodder.
Senio was ably replaced by Canterbury import Corey Tamou on Saturday and Hodder has young Otamatea halfback Tom Fleetwood waiting in the wings.
"From what I could gather John's injury could be a hamstring tear but it may actually be just a strain or a pull. Hopefully we get a favourable message back from the medical staff (today). If we don't then we might have to think about other options to cover halfback," Hodder said.
Northland lost their opening game to Wellington 47-23 on Saturday in what was an encouraging display. They now start preparations to meet Taranaki in crucial fixture in New Plymouth this weekend.