TWO teams and two different motivators for winning will be on show tomorrow when St Pat’s play host to Orange CYMS in the last round of the regular Group 10 premier league season.

Current competition frontrunners Pat’s are out to secure the minor premiership and with it a free pass to the second week of finals. On the other hand, currently fifth-placed CYMS are under pressure to remain in title contention with a resurgent Bathurst Panthers hoping to leapfrog them.

A 30-27 win for St Pat’s in a tight encounter last time the two sides met as well as the ladder situation promises a tantalising showdown at the Sportsground.

According to coach Kurt Hancock, the atmosphere among the Pat’s camp couldn’t be more positive after last Sunday’s 30-26 win over the Orange Hawks.

“We’ve got a good feel going at the club at the moment. Even though last week wasn’t a pretty win, it was what we needed. The boys have been very upbeat at training. They’re very excited and looking forward to the semis,” he said.

“There’s a lot of pressure taken off taken off them and they’re enjoying their footy ... there’s a fair bit of belief that we can win it now, without trying to look too far ahead.”

How CYMS choose to approach the game will be very dependant on the result between the Bathurst Panthers and Hawks today. A Panthers victory immediately turns tomorrow’s match into a must-win for the visitors.

Therefore it will not just be CYMS who watch today’s game intently, but Hancock as well.

“A lot obviously depends on the Panthers/Hawks game. If Panthers do get up, then I expect CYMS to really step it up. If they don’t then they may choose to rest some players,” he said.

“When you’ve got Ben McAlpine and Mick Sullivan it doesn’t really matter how you’ve been travelling. When they get it right you know that you’ll be in for a tough day. Mick is also a great coach and it shows in their play.

“They’re very structured in their set-ups. Everyone runs the right lines and play their roles. Hopefully we improve on last week and play out a full 80 minutes of football.”

Some shuffling will be done to the Pat’s line up this week, most notably in the halves where Antonio Ale returns to halfback after arriving back from an overseas trip.

Kick-off is set for 2.30pm tomorrow at the Sportsground.

ST PAT’S: 1 Ben Hews, 2 Adam Morton, 3 Mick Armstrong, 4 Dane Howard, 5 Jake Bright, 6 Garry Reilly, 7 Antonio Ale, 8 Luke Single, 9 Benjamin John, 10 Paleatime Ale, 11 Cyp Ale, 12 Jacob Bell, 13 Brent Dennis, 14 Campbell Scott, 15 Ben Thompson, 16 John Hanscomb, 17 Dane Fisher.