PORT Macquarie Sharks will qualify for this season’s Group 3 rugby league semi-finals, but exactly where remains to be seen.
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A win over Taree City in Taree on Saturday will lock up third position and a double chance, while a loss will see them slide to fifth.
A fifth-place finish will ensure an elimination final next weekend.
The Bulls have the advantage heading in to this weekend’s match after accounting for the Sharks 36-8 in May.
But coach Wayne Grant isn’t reading into that result – he just wants to lock up a second chance in the finals.
“I’d rather finish third because then you don’t have to play knockout straight away,” he said.
“In saying that, they’ll be tough because they’re also chasing that third spot.”
Grant will again be scraping for replacements with Joel Antilla (wrist) and Brendon Liania (knee) all withdrawals from the team beaten 32-12 by Port City.
“We’ll have to find someone, but that’s been the story for most of the year,” he said.
“But we’ll dust ourselves off and go again.”
Saturday’s match kicks off at 3.15pm at Jack Neal Oval.