Mustwin match for North Otago

OAMARU: North Otago faces West Coast at Whitestone Stadium this afternoon with the knowledge it must win if it is to have any hope of progressing to the playoffs in three weeks time.

North Otago (10th place) is one point behind Poverty Bay, Mid Canterbury and WairarapaBush.

West Coast has plenty of motivation to beat North Otago. It has four wins from five games, and a bonus point win against North Otago would give it a chance of a place in the Meads Cup section.

West Coast team manager, Luke McNeish believes his side can kick on.

‘‘We had a couple of tough matches early in the season but the boys are getting into their work, so we’re on track to make the Lochore Cup or the Meads Cup playoffs,’’ he said.

‘‘We’ve got a pretty good club rugby competition and the majority of the team come out of that competition.

‘‘We have loan players but in many of the small unions like the Coast, we can’t find local players to fill positions through work committments.

‘‘The loan players that we have in are able to bring in added experience for West Coast.’’

For example, both locks, Tumama Tu’ulua (Auckland University) and Josh Manning (Christchurch Marist), are loan players and have played at a much higher level.

West Coast has picked up four bonus points for scoring four tries, while North Otago has scored four tries on only one occasion.

North Otago, which leads the headtohead since 2006 with five wins to three, has made changes in the forwards.

Locks Jared Whitburn and Josh Clark will team up in the lineout, while Jake Greenslade gets his first start for the season on the blindside flank.

In the backs, first five eighth Tyler Burgess also makes his first start of the season, while Hemaua Samisoni returns to the starting XV at centre.

Paul Tupai replaces Taina Tamou at second fiveeighth and Josh Buncan slips back to fullback.

In other round six Heartland games, Wanganui will play Buller. Secondplaced South Canterbury travels to Masterton to play WairarapaBush, HorowhenuaKapiti hosts King Country and Thames Valley meets Poverty Bay in Gisborne. Mid Canterbury plays East Coast in Ashburton.