Are they hurting? Not half, in Takahiwai's case

Takahiwai are losing troops like wildfire and the depleted side will take on Wairoa tomorrow  to try  to turn the tables following three consecutive losses.
When team stalwart Nick Godfrey was ruled out of tomorrow's match against Wairoa and possibly for the rest of the season after  lopping off his finger in an industrial accident, things could not get much worse for coach Mark Freeman - except for when he lost his second halfback, O'Shea Williams.
"Nick has been our halfback for 10 years - he's a huge loss to the team," Freeman said.
"The way I coach, the halves pretty much run my game and Nick has been running it all year.
"If you lose one of the halves you can compensate, but when you lose two, you're in a tough position."
When fellow halfback  Williams left the team and moved back to Auckland, it forced Freeman to trial players out of position, rotating bench players at training and in the last few games, he said.
Among players who put their hands up to take over the key  role was 16-year-old Jess Epiha.
"It's a lot of pressure to put on a young guy - playing him in the halves - but he has taken up the challenge and settled in the different position at training. We're pretty  rapt with him - he has a big future."
Also missing from the Takahiwai line-up is prop Ed Wilson (leg), Craig Heta (knee), second rower Jordan Hall and Jamie Erceg who is out for the season with injury.
"We're in a bad way injury-wise and we just have to teach guys new positions," Freeman said.
The setback has come at the business end of the season with four games remaining until the August 1 playoffs.
Last year's premiers Takahiwai took the Whangarei City and Districts rugby league competition by storm and did not lost a game until their second round clash with Portland on June 13.
Since then, it has been a slippery slope for the team - losing to Hikurangi and last week in a 2008 grand final replay, they bowed out to Kaikohe.
Takahiwai slid into second spot on the table equal with Portland while Moerewa took over the lead.
Hikurangi are third, followed by Kaikohe and Wairoa fourth equal, then Bay Slayers and City Knights occupy the bottom two spaces. 
With an unpredictable Wairoa Bulls waiting in the wings ready to strike Takahiwai at their most vulnerable, Freeman said his side had to focus on the game ahead.
"We have to get back on the winning track before semis but we don't want to think about that yet - we're just focussed on playing Wairoa."
Takahiwai host Wairoa tomorrow , while Portland visit the Bay Slayers at home. Hikurangi clash with Moerewa at Hikurangi, and City Knights travel to Kaikohe to play the Lions.
All games kick off at 2.30pm.