OLD Bar coach Jason Morrissey has backed his forwards to stand up to Wauchope in Sunday's top-of-the-table Group Three Rugby League clash against undefeated Wauchope at Old Bar.
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Morrissey said the game will be determined in the forwards.
"They've got the group pack,'' Morrissey said of Wauchope.
"But I wouldn't swap any of my players for anyone.''
The Pirates sit in second place, one win behind the Blues. Wauchope won the first round encounter 34-26 on a day when the Pirates could kick only one goal.
Morrissey agrees his side will have to keep the Trembath brothers in check if they are going to win the contest, even if there's an injury cloud over captain-coach Rob. But he's equally as concerned about the in-form Jordan Galloway, who generally slots into the hooking role off the bench.
"We can't afford to give him half a chance from dummy half or he will be off,'' Morrissey said.
But he added that no pack in the group holds any fears for his forwards and believes prop Kyle Cochrane will be primed for a big performance.
"He had the flu last week but they still had trouble stopping him,'' he said.
Morrissey maintains his side has improved since the first round encounter, which was just the second game of the year.
"We had a lot of new players in the team and we were still working combinations,'' he said.
"And Daniel (Harris) wasn't back playing then and he's made a big difference.''
Morrissey agrees it seems likely the Pirates will have to beat Wauchope tomorrow if they are going to have any hope of taking out the minor premiership.
A loss would mean Old Bar would have to win all their remaining games and hope other results go their way.
"This is our best chance,'' he said.
"We're fit, we're playing good football and we're playing at home in front of what hopefully will be a big crowd.''
He added that he isn't excited about the prospect of playing Wauchope in the pointy end of the season at Wauchope.
For that reason he hopes there's plenty of home town support at The Graveyard on Sunday.
"This should be a quality game,'' he said.