Mt Smart Stadium, 5.30pm

Referee: Tony Archer

If this turns out to be anything other than a low-scoring, close game, it will be a surprise. The Warriors have hammered out a couple of narrow home wins over Melbourne (8-6) and Brisbane (16-12) recently and this one looks like being a similar proposition.

The Sharks have a strong defence. They are the kings of the low-scoring, close game and they will go to Auckland ready for one almighty arm wrestle. The Warriors will need to be patient under those circumstances and be prepared to grind out a win if it is to come their way, but they showed the ability to hang in there and not over-play their hand in those wins over the Storm and the Broncos.

It is a massive game for both teams, with Cronulla very close to making sure of a top-four spot going into the finals and the Warriors desperately fighting for one of the last few spots in the top eight. The Warriors have got a 7-3 home record and the Sharks a 7-3 away record. The Warriors have won five of their last six and the Sharks have won three of their last four, so you can see what we've got here: a meeting of two teams that will be genuinely confident about their chances of winning. The Warriors deserve slight favouritism at home, based on their strong recent record there, but it could obviously go either way.