MANNING Ratz coach Jake Maurirere admits his side will be entering the unknown when they tackle Old Bar in the Lower North Coast Rugby Union clash at Old Bar's Trad Fields on Saturday.
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The Clams have been permitted to play 10-a-side by the zone until the club has more players on its roster. However, the match will carry full competition points.
"I really don't know how it works with 10-a-side,'' Maurirere said.
"I don't know if we have unlimited interchange or if we're restricted to the number of players we can have on the bench.''
For the first time this season the Ratz should have 20 to 22 players to choose from.
"So it's not the best time to be playing 10-a-side, but it's helping keep Old Bar in the comp, so it's all good,'' he added.
The Ratz are recovering from a 56-10 hammering in last weekend's game against Wallamba. Despite the score Maurirere said there were some positives for the side and also some excuses.
"We only had 16 players at the kickoff. I was forced out after aggravating a knee injury at training while Wayne Gahan had a calf injury,'' he said.
The Ratz also had a number of players unavailable.
The situation further deteriorated when Chris Fitzsimmons had to leave for work at halftime while two players spent time in the sin bin in the second half.
"We were down 42-0 at halftime and if the guys had put their heads down we could have been beaten by 80 or 90,'' Maurirere said.
However, the Ratz rallied and scored two tries while restricting Wallamba to 14.
Maurirere said newcomer Blake Howard, in his first game of rugby, impressed in the forwards and will add size to the Ratz pack. Nik Mylonas was typically busy at flanker and set up one try.
Maurirere underwent reconstruction surgery on the knee last year and he feared his season may have been curtailed when he injured it again.
"We were running a drill at training when I heard a pop,'' he said.
However, he has been advised it's soft tissue damage.
"It's feeling a lot better and I'm starting to get more mobility in it,'' he said.
The Clams continue their desperate efforts to stay in the competition.
There'll be a general bye in the competition next weekend for representative matches and Old Bar officials hope to bolster resources for when play resumes on Saturday May 14.
