IN the previous three editions of the Daily Liberal's Whitney Cup mid-season report we have looked at teams outside the finals position who would be feeling content with their start of the season after recording victories and showing some promising performances.
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But today we come to Rugby, the defending premiers who currently sit third on the ladder and in a finals position but who are a side which is yet to fully hit the heights of last season.
Jordan Moran's men have recorded three wins, two losses and a rain-affected draw and despite that being far from poor much more was expected from Rugby's powerhouse lineup.
They haven't had things all their own way though.
Opening bowler Ben Taylor had surgery during the off-season, meaning he missed much of opening part of the season while the heavy representative schedule has forced the likes of Moran, Mitch Bower and Ben Patterson to miss plenty of cricket.
Patterson has now departed for Hawkesbury and Sydney Grade Cricket, leaving a big hole in the bowling attack, but Moran will be confident that with his best players now ready to perform week in, week out his side can climb the ladder further.
Confidence is not an issue at all for Rugby with players always backing their ability no matter who they play against and that will come to the fore over the coming months but they will be keen to see their batting lineup pile on more runs.
Only two of their players, Aidan Bennewith (seventh) and Jordan Moran (12th), are inside the top 18 run-scorers in 2014-15 and the side has only passed 200 on three occasions this season, not surprisingly they were the three matches they won.
Despite Patterson's departure there is still plenty of firepower with the ball with Taylor in fine form and the likes of Blake Watmore, Zac Murphy and the newly recruited Jacob Bruce providing support while there are also spin options in the shape of Adrian Carey and Mitch Bower.
Rugby may not have fully fired this season but the fact they still sit third is a warning for the rest of the competition and with rep players back and everyone refreshed and with a renewed focus after a mid-season break they will still be confident of defending the title they won in 2013-14.
But whether they can overcome the talent of the top two sides this season is another question.
