Simon to Sit on Sideline

Port Kembla's Major Semi Final loss to Collies has been a double blow for The Blacks as they strive for their first premiership since 1965. Not only have the Blacks been forced into a sudden death Preliminary Final against the defending premier side Thirroul, they are also resigned to the fact that Captain-Coach Craig Simon will have to spend the remainder of the season on the sideline.

Simon was carried from the field early in the second half of the loss to Collegians with a knee injury. The mere fact that Simon needed to be stretchered from the ground led many to believe that the solid Port centre would not be back within a week. medical advice received by Simon this week has almost certainly confirmed that he will take no part in the remainder of the season.

Simon's loss adds to a late season injury dilemma for The Black's main squad. Regular halfback Mark Simon was injured in the round 13 game against Wests at Noel Mulligan Oval and has subsequently missed the last five competition games as well as the Major Semi Final, and he is also set to miss the Preliminary Final against Thirroul this Saturday at WIN Stadium. Mark Simon is still hopeful of returning in time for the Grand Final should Port defeat Thirroul this weekend.

The loss of the Simon brothers comes on top of the season ending injury sustained by Nathan Heffernan in the final round against Collegians. Heffernan was just two weeks into his return from a lengthy lay-off which started in the round 6 game against Dapto.

Glenn McPhee is the likely replacement for Craig Simon in this weekends final against Thirroul. The bulk of the squad is expected to remain unchanged with the only contentious position believed to be in the second row where Nick Nikitaras and Daniel Jiminez will fill one second row position along side Andrew Bobbin. All other players came through the Collegians loss unscathed, albeit it slightly battered and bruised.

Port go into the match against The Butchers under similar conditions to that in which they entered the Collies game. The previous meetings between the two contenders this year have seen Port the victors on both occasions. Port won an enthralling match at Gibson Park early in the year when they beat Thirroul by a scoreline of 46-32. They backed it up with a win against The Butchers at home by 30-18.

Port coach Craig Simon knows only too well that these results count for little though come Finals football. Collegians showed that the Blacks would need to be on their game to progress through to the Grand Final. In the match against the Dogs, Port turned over possession too often to gain any momentum and achieve any consistency in attack. Their four tries in the match proved that they have the fire power to breach their opponents defence if they could control the football. Their defence let in just one more try than they scored themselves with goal kicking making up the large part of the difference. Johno Johnson had a rare off day with the boot where his wide conversion attempts hit the post, dropped just short and shaved the upright.

Port are aware that a more concerted effort in controlling the ball when in possession will result in an increase in field position for the team and this will surely be a focus for the team as they prepare to take on the might of the Blue and Whites from Thirroul.

Thirroul will be buoyed by the return of Jay Van Meegan from injury. The Butcher's forward was a pivotal part of Thirroul's good early season form and his inclusion in the pack will create more headaches for a Port pack needing to deal with the likes of Couchman, Attenborough and Linde. This aside, The Blacks engine room has done nothing to suggest that they are not up to the task of matching it with Thirroul's forwards.

The Preliminary Final is scheduled to kick off at 7pm at WIN Stadium on Saturday evening. The main game will be preceded by Reserve Grade at 5.30pm (Dapto vs Collegians), Tooheys New Cup at 4pm (Berkeley vs Avondale) and The Under 18's at 2.30pm (Berkeley vs Dapto). As an added feature of the afternoon's entertainment, The Illawarra Steelers Jersey Flegg side will play The Canberra Raiders at 12.30pm.