ST Pat’s are hoping the Sportsground will prove to be the fortress that brings to an end a nine-game winning streak for the Orange Hawks in their Group 10 premier league clash tomorrow.
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While Pat’s have spent the past month trying to join the Mudgee Dragons at the top of the table, the Hawks’ giant run has got them to within a point of the leading pair and poised to strike.
Pat’s were the second team on the Hawks’ menu during their winning streak, going down 22-20 at Wade Park. Tomorrow, an understrength Pat’s line-up will try to turn the tables.
With Antonio Ale unable to return to the side due to a delayed flight home, Brent Dennis will be filling the void in the halves. Jacob Bell finds himself in a more central role at lock.
“Without a doubt, they [Hawks] are the form side of the competition. They’re the side with all the momentum and a win for them could even get them to the top of the ladder,” Pat’s coach Kurt Hancock said.
“They’re a team who know how to play from behind, which means it has to be 80 minutes of good football from us. It will need to be one of our best team performances of the year.
“Our last five weeks we’ve been playing good only in patches. If we do that this week they’re going to hurt us.”
Hancock says although last week’s win over Mudgee wasn’t flawless, it at least showed signs that his team is in the right frame of mind with finals approaching.
“We really controlled things in defence, even with the errors we had. We just need to tidy those up. This time of year we need to be more patient with the ball,” he said.
“Last week was a massive improvement. Down 12-0 we could have leaked more points, but we found our way and from there we got ourselves back into the game. Our defence is now starting to get back to the level it was from the first few games, so that’s really promising.
“We’ve got to send a message that, yes, we can score points, but you’ll have to work hard if you want to get your points against us.”
Cameron Neville will miss this week with a rib injury, while Benjamin John has been named to play by Hancock but is suffering from a similar problem.
ST PAT’S: 1 Ben Hews, 2 Jon Hanscomb, 3 Mick Armstrong, 4 Dane Howard, 5 Jake Bright, 6 Brent Dennis, 7 Garry Reilly, 8 Luke Single, 9 Benjamin John, 10 Paleatime Ale, 11 Cyp Ale, 12 Campbell Scott, 13 Jacob Bell, 14 Dane Fisher, 15 Ben Thompson, 16 Corey Averio, 17 Derryn Clayton
