PORTLAND’S Hampden league senior footballers will make the trip to Friendly Societies Park tomorrow to take on one of the premier sides in the competition in South Warrnambool.

The Roosters, who currently sit at the top of the ladder looking down on the rest of the competition, present a formidable task for the 1-6 Tigers, but Portland senior coach Jarrod Holt said his side is focused on putting together a consistent game of footy from start to finish.

“That would be important, if we can obviously start well and then find a way to keep competing for the full quarters,” Holt said.

“We’ve been getting into games which has been positive, but we have to start finishing them off.

“In saying that, I think we have gained some confidence compared to the start of the season… there’s been a number of guys that have improved a substantial amount.”

South are one of the top sides when it comes to both the ladder as it currently stands and when it comes to projections of who is likely to be competing for a premiership into September.

Holt said that while the calibre of their opposition is something his group will be aware of, he doesn’t see any reason why his side should fail to remain competitive throughout.

“South have obviously been one of the best sides in the competition, and they going to be a tough challenge there’s no doubt,” Holt said.

“But we’ve been able to stay competitive and in the game against these good sides for large portions of the matches, and I don’t see why this week would be any different.

“I want to see our highs and lows not be as extreme, a smaller gap between them would be nice… but our best football is certainly ahead of us.”

The Tigers will be without ruckman Toby Oakley for the remainder of the season as he requires surgery.

They have called in reinforcements by way of number one ruck option of many years in Ben Malcolm, but with him still being a few weeks away, the workload for the time being is going to fall elsewhere.

“(Sam Peck) will have to shoulder a bit more of the responsibility, he’s done well so far this season as a young player against more experienced opposition,” Holt said.

“Sam Hampshire will also rotate through at times I would expect… between them two I’d say that will be most of the ruck work.”

The Tigers will also hope to welcome back a couple of other players from the sidelines, with Taylor Murrell (hamstring) having played in the reserves last week, while captain Josh Edwards (shoulder) may also return shortly.