Clear Picture of Playoff Contenders After Round Five

Wellington club rugby fans should have a clear picture of the make up of this year's Jubilee Cup semi-finalists following this weekend's fifth round of matches. Last week's round four action saw Marist St. Pat's confirmed as the first semi-finalist and the Wests Roosters drop out of the reckoning, leaving six teams chasing the remaining three playoff berths over the next three weeks of round robin play.

Last week MSP became the first team to book a playoffs berth, their first in four seasons, when they beat Tawa 23-16 last weekend for their fourth straight win, while the Wests Roosters were knocked off their playoff perch with their fourth straight loss, going down to Petone 18-7.

Both Poneke and OBU are poised to join the Roosters on the semi-final sidelines should they lose in round five. In crunch games for them, Poneke plays Petone at Kilbirnie Park, while OBU take on Tawa at Lyndhurst Park in what both promise to be willing battles. OBU will be desperate to stay alive after bowing out of playoff contention last year in the last round, losing to Petone in a virtual quarter final. Poneke meanwhile showed in their determined 23-3 win over OBU last week that they won't go down without a fight, while their 25-20 victory over Petone in the Swindale Shield round was just as gritty.

Regardless of the outcomes in Kilbirnie and Tawa, Hutt Old Boys Marist and Northern United both have the chance to play their way into the top four this weekend against MSP and Wests respectively. It's sure to be spirited battle in this week's feature match at Evans Bay Park, with HOBM out to topple MSP after a disappointing 28-5 loss to Norths last week. It was also a thriller when these two teams met in the last round of the Swindale Shield five weeks ago, MSP pipping their Hutt Valley rivals 32-29 with a last-gasp try.

Norths fans can also look back to their 72-0 last round Swindale Shield win over Wests for assurances against them this time around, although no one will be picking such a wide margin in their clash at Porirua Park. Wests were determined against Petone last week, while for Norths complacency is a factor, as is the possibility of losing up to seven of their players to the Vodafone Wellington Lions' Air New Zealand Cup squad.

Meanwhile, it's a similar story in the Hardham Cup this weekend with runaway leaders Oriental-Rongotai the first team to make the playoffs, leaving Avalon, Upper Hutt, Wainuiomata and Johnsonville all fighting for the remaining three spots. All eyes will be on Fraser Park in a key game between Johnsonville and Avalon, while their remaining three rivals will be expected to beat B-side opposition.