A sitting duck

Justin Marshall is facing the prospect of finishing his career in a part-time league at some of the least salubrious grounds in the Northern Hemisphere.

Leeds Tykes, the club Marshall has signed to play for after the Lions tour, are rooted to the bottom of the Zurich Premiership with only five games remaining. Relegation to National Division One, which houses such luminaries as Rotherham, Ottley and Solihull, is now a very real prospect.

Leeds are one point adrift of Northampton and four behind Harlequins and their run-in pits them against the top two clubs, Leicester and London Wasps, as well match-ups with fourth-placed Gloucester and fifth-placed Bath. Leeds have won just two of their last 10 league games and have been hit hard by injuries and international call-ups.

Their home game against Harlequins on April 17 looms as a relegation decider.

Marshall says he is going, regardless of whether Leeds survive the drop. He wouldn't discuss his contract or reveal whether he has a get-out clause that would allow him to avoid a fate which seems totally demeaning for an All Black with his record.

It would be remiss in the extreme if such a clause has not been written into the paperwork.

Leeds are perennial strugglers with no real pedigree in the top flight. They were relegated in 2002 and finished second bottom last season. When Marshall signed in January, they'd won only four out of 13 games and were hovering just above the relegation zone.

The next two months will be a nervous wait for Marshall. He's leaving New Zealand partly because he needs to experience something new after 10 seasons of Super 12 and Tri-Nations.

Playing in National Division One will certainly fit the bill in terms of providing a new challenge. But Marshall is a fierce competitor and in the kind of form where he can command a place in the All Black squad.

Lining up alongside part-time accountants and electricians is unlikely to provide him with the playing challenge he is looking for.

The danger for Marshall, though, is that by the time Leeds' fate is known it may be too late for him to find a contract elsewhere.

The Zurich Premiership clubs have to operate within a salary cap and most are already finalising their playing roster for next season.

There are two rays of light for Marshall - the salary cap may be pushed out from 1.9 million ($5m) this season to 2.15 million ($5.6m) next season and normally there is a late scramble to buy the better players from a relegated club.

Marshall is an obvious target, although he may not be offered the 150,000 ($400,000) a season that he was set to earn at Leeds.

He is far too professional to let the uncertainty affect his game.

But for the next six weeks, Marshall will be just like a duck - the epitome of calm on the surface while working furiously behind the scenes.