Football
Marquis Wairarapa United coach Phil Keinzley has had plenty to ponder since his side's narrow 2-1 loss to Upper Hutt last weekend.
Not the least of his concerns will be the mounting casualty list. Newcomers Jorge De La Torre and George Jermy have both been ruled out of Sunday's home fixture against Wellington United. De La Torre sustained a shoulder injury which required hospitalisation while Jermy has a leg injury.
This weekend's game is shaping up as a "must win" for Keinzley who has seen table-toppers Miramar Rangers and Wellington Olympic steal a march on his side, opening up a five-point lead after just two rounds of games.
History has shown United have been unable to overhaul early season points deficits so gaining three points on offer this weekend is an imperative if United are to fulfil their ambition of lifting the Central League title.
At the back of Keinzley's mind may also be the thought that striker Seule Soromon has yet to find the back of the net this season. Soromon has been a key source of goals for United and will be keen to get his tally under way. This in itself would take some of the pressure off other team members to score as well as providing a lift for the team in general who have only registered two goals to date.
On the flip side, Keinzley will welcome the return of influential skipper Adam Cowan who was unavailable last weekend.
The injury list, results this season so far and Cowan's return may see Keinzley adopt a different line-up on Sunday. The success of centre backs Waisake Sabatu and Esava Naqeleca may tempt him to retain that pairing at the heart of the defence, allowing Cowan to be pushed up field in a more attacking role, either alongside or just behind Soromon.
Cowan is a creative player, confident on the ball and his ability to take on defenders and beat them could open up gaps for both Soromon and speedy wide man Dale Higham to exploit. Considering scoring goals to secure the win is a real priority, then this formation remains a possibility.
Furthermore this also means Nathan Cooksley could be deployed in a more defensive midfield role screening the back four. This is a position he is familiar with and which utilises some of his principal areas of strength - tenacious tackling, ability to read the game and breaking up opposition attacks.
Meanwhile in Capital 2, Douglas Villa will travel to Tawa buoyed by their comprehensive and well deserved 6-2 victory over Upper Hutt last Saturday. Considering Villa had no build-up to the season this was an impressive victory but they will need to put in a similar performance if they want to come away with the spoils against Tawa.
The Capital 3 table has a distinctly home-grown and healthy look to it with Gardner Electrical Masterton, White Swan Greytown and Wairarapa United seconds all among the front-runners. Wairarapa United, who drew 1-1 last time out, travel to Marist, while Gardner Electrical Masterton will need to work hard to secure an away win against undefeated Victoria University and White Swan Greytown will want to take advantage of playing at home when they take on Petone.