Rugby: Marist's 100th team feels expectation

Cameron Crowley hopes to be past the knee injury that ended his 2016 representative season.

There is a long way for Dave Hoskin Carriers Marist to go if they intend to make the Tasman Tanning Premier finals in their centenary year.

The Spriggens Park team make the quick hop up Devon Rd tomorrow to take on a Wanganui Car Centre Kaierau side who, once again, sit real neighbourly with them on the points table after two rounds.

On paper, the 2016 semifinalists seemed like early contenders coming into the season, having picked up some key players with more reportedly on the way, however they have struggled out of the gate with the narrow derby loss to Black Bull Liquor Pirates and then barely holding off the-now one team club Utiku Old Boys at Memorial Park last Saturday.

"We could be 2-0 or we could be 0-2," said coach Jason Hamlin.

"Pirates played better rugby. I didn't go to Utiku but watch the video and we played a lot of football but didn't achieve a lot.

"But they won, at the end of the day."

As usual for Marist, Hamlin is blooding young players in key positions this season, specifically at lock, first-five and on the wings.

"When you got kids and you know they've got to learn. They're going to make mistakes as well," said Hamlin.

"When you've got 18-year-olds in your team, they're going to make 18-year-old mistakes."

Marist had been looking at the arrival of Fijian lock Laka Waka Valu, as well as the return of 2010 representative halfback Matt Koubaridis, however Hamlin has not had contact with either man yet.

The 2016 MVP Ryan Gill did commit to play but now has injured cartilage, while returning linchpin lock Sam Madams is being watched carefully due to a sore ankle, although he will not be available for a fortnight after tomorrow.

But there is better news amongst the other veterans as prop Viki Tofa made his return against Utiku, while backline general Steelie Koro and Cameron Crowley should be right to start, with Crowley looking to move past the knee injury that cost him the end of the Meads Cup-winning campaign.

For Marist, this is a return to the scene of the crime as they were party crashers at the Kaierau Country Club last season when they defeated the home team 35-13 on their 125th anniversary weekend, a loss which signalled Kaierau's slow descent to just miss the semifinals.

Hamlin is well aware the two sides have gone a lot of 50-50 in recent seasons, splitting the two round robin games.

"They'll be in a similar situation, they've got a sprinkling of young backs out there.

"If they can get some ball, they're pretty handy.

"[Against Ngamatapouri] it ended up with 40 points in 20 minutes. They've got some scoring ability."

"We've just have to be better at what we're doing."

In the other matches, the PGG Wrightson/Balance Taihape vs Pirates clash at Spriggens Park should be a ripper with both teams vying for sole lead on the table.

Waverley Harvesting Border will take their newly-won Grand Hotel Challenge Shield on the road to face Utiku, while McCarthy's Transport Ruapehu will look to rebound from the shield loss when they arrive at the Pa to meet Harvey Round Motors Ratana.