KEY POINTS:
Glory years: 1980.
2006 finish: 14th (D1 L8).
Best result: Drew 25-25 with Counties-Manukau in repechage phase.
Worst result: Lost 43-0 to Tasman in round 2.
Dearly departed: Keni Barrett, Tim Faleafaga, Nathan Kemp, Sam Moore, David Palu.
Holidaying in France: None.
New kids on the block: Hamish Gosling, Aaron James, Yohei Shinomiya.
Shooting star: Francisco Bosch is a flamboyant Argentinian fullback whose flowing locks and blonde beard tend to make him look a lot like a white man's image of Jesus. And he did perform minor miracles for the Turbos last year, topping the try scoring charts with two.
Old stagers: Lock Hayden Triggs notched his 50th cap for the province in last night's competition opener. He's actually a half-decent player, having earned a place in the Hurricanes squad for this year's Super 14.
Coaches count: Dave Rennie is one of four coaches in the competition to have won a national title, having taken his Wellington side to Canterbury and lifted the trophy in 2000. The following year he came within one of the worst refereeing displays in the history of sport of adding the Ranfurly Shield to his CV. Things haven't gone quite as well of late.
Quirks of the draw: Tough start hosting the defending champs in round one but gets a little easier after that with a trip to fellow minnows Tasman. Possible shield challenge in round six, although Harbour will need to have seen off Waikato a week earlier for that to happen.
Home: Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Otago, Counties-Manukau, Hawkes Bay. Away: Tasman, Wellington, Otago, North Harbour, Southland. Not playing: Auckland, Northland, Taranaki.
Scouting report
Lost to Bay of Plenty (18-27) and Northland (22-34) but did manage a pre-season victory over Taranaki (22-20). Failed to win a single match last year, scoring only 10 tries all season - seven fewer than next-worse Northland. Did win the title in 1980 though, and, if you believe the NZRU handbook, they also won it in 1990. Trust me, they didn't.
Prospects
Rugby boffin types say successful teams tend to have a strong spine, meaning a good hooker, No 8, halfback and fullback. This is of course utter crap invented by people paid to talk about things that often deserve little more than bemused silence - a bit like cricket's 'corridor of uncertainty'. Still, Manawatu's spine is strong enough when you consider they have a former Springbok in Roelof (Joggie) Viljeon at halfback and Jesus at fullback. Sadly, however, a strong spine doesn't do you much good if you don't have any arms and legs.
Prediction: 14th - you are the biggest losers. Goodbye.
