The Dubbo Rhinos face one of the toughest runs home in the Blowes Clothing Cup but coach Dave Stuart is confident if his side play at their best and put everything they’ve learnt this year into practice, then they can cause another upset or two.
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The men in black and gold are coming off heavy back-to-back losses against Orange City and the Forbes Platypi and face three more difficult matches against top five contenders Cowra, Bathurst Bulldogs and crosstown rivals Dubbo Kangaroos before the season is out.
Last time the Rhinos met Cowra the Eagles ran out dominant 80-14 winners but Stuart is hopeful his side can finish 2016 well.
“Last time we were a bit undermanned when we went there and they put 80 on us so with home ground advantage and a bit more of a settled lineup I’m hoping for a better performance,” he said.
“I’m hoping there’s an upset in there (the final three games) but our game would really have to come together and recently we’ve only been at about 60% for just 50% of the match.”
While finals is no possibility for his side, Stuart has been delighted by the fact his players haven’t thrown in the towel in what is the club’s first season back in the Blowes competition.
The Rhinos are also just two points behind the struggling Parkes Boars, and a win in the final three weeks would give the Dubbo club a great chance of avoiding the wooden spoon, something which many punters felt was impossible at the start of the year.
“One of the best things this year is that the guys have stayed positive and they’re all keen to finish the season off,” he said.
“We all want to push these teams and last week we pushed Forbes in the first half but fell away a bit in the second.”
Making the Rhinos’ challenge a bit more difficult this weekend is the fact Luke Gibbs is out after suffering a broken leg in last week’s loss.
Sam McLeod, arguably one of the standout players in the whole competition this year, also remains in severe doubt after missing the past two games with a back complaint.
In more positive fitness news, both Manbir Mann and Jordan Davis are edging closer to a return and are every chance of running out this weekend, in a match where Stuart wants his side to “keep on improving”.
Cowra come into the match at Caltex Park in fifth spot and aware a win over the last-placed Rhinos will further boost their chances of a place in the finals.
Also making them focused on the clash is the fact they didn’t get the chance to play last week after their match against CSU at Bathurst was abandoned due to the poor quality of the playing surface.
Saturday’s first grade fixture at Caltex Park kicks off at 3.15pm.