Wardlaw, making his debut in the skipper role this season, said his team were feeling confident despite the prospect of a well structured and clinical Mount side.
"We definitely feel good, we have the advantage of being at Emery Park - we are strong at home. I never believed in that kind of thing about teams being able to create a castle but we are certainly on our way to doing that and that's the atmosphere I want here," he said.
"This season we have been bad on the road - that's not an excuse. Our mental preparation just wasn't quite there and it really showed in the game. That's all different this week - I've stressed that players need to bring mana into the jersey.
"The Mount are always a strong outfit - they have a lot of fitness within their ranks and are well structured and clinical finishers - our forwards have to be dominant against them."
Rotoiti sit seventh tied on 10 points, with the Mount and Whaka, and have suffered several injuries - most notably No 8 Jesse Acton.
Wardlaw said poor weather conditions due to Cyclone Cook could further affect match preparation.
"We've got a couple of injuries but you have to deal with that - it's a long season," he said.
"Already this week we've had to do gym work instead of being out on the field. We've been scrambling a bit to find a place we can have a run out on but I'm hoping we will have a chance to put our final game plan into action before Saturday."
Baywide Premier and Premier Development Draws:
Saturday:
Rotoiti v Tauranga Sports at Emery Park
Rangataua v Arataki at Te Ariki Park
Premier kick-off: 2.45pm, Premier Development kick-off: 1pm
Baywide Division 1:
Saturday:
Ngongotaha v Waimana at Ngongotaha Domain
Kick-off: 12.30pm
