BIG Beau White is the player Old Bar will have to shut down if the Pirates are going to upset Wauchope in the Group Three Rugby League game at Old Bar tomorrow.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Coach Jamie Moorehead said White, a former representative centre, is the player most likely to cause his side troubles. A tall, long striding player, White has been in solid form for the Blues this season and has a knack of scoring important tries at crucial moments in a match.
Adding to Moorehead's consternation is the fact the Pirates are likely to field an inexperienced centre combination tomorrow. Bailey Farr has succumbed to a couple of niggling injuries and will be given the day off.
Moorehead will team Justin Berry with Nathan Napier in the centres. This will be Berry's return to first grade after he aggravated a hamstring injury while scoring a try against the Blues in the first round encounter.
"Nathan Napier's a big bodied centre and he was outstanding for us last week,'' Moorehead said.
Winger Andrew Hills is unavailable so his place has gone to Blake Elford.
The Pirates go into the game fresh from the season's first win - a 36-12 decision over Taree City last weekend. This was highlighted by a three-try performance from winger Joe Hinton.
"The boys played hard and celebrated hard last week, now we want more,'' Moorehead said.
Related:
Old Bar still sits in last place on two points so avoiding the wooden spoon will be the main priority. Taree City has five points so the best scenario for the Pirates is to win two more matches and hope the Bulls don't add to their tally.
However, Moorehead agreed the Blues will be tough.
"They're a definite top three side,'' he said.
"They're a hard nosed team - they don't give away silly penalties and they're coming off a loss, so that'll make them more determined.''
The game will start at the earlier time of 2pm because of the representative league tag game at Macksville. The club league tag clash between Old Bar and Wauchope will be underway from 3.30.
The Blues dropped out of the top two for the first time this season when going down to Wingham 20-10 at Wingham last Sunday.
This will also be Wauchope's third game on the road although there was a break for the long weekend.
Their recent record isn't great as the Blues go into Saturday's game on the back of a draw against Taree City and the loss to Wingham.
However, coach Anthony Boyd was generally happy with the effort against the Tigers. The Blues will be back at home on June 29 for the clash with Port City.
