sure of one thing -- they will have 15 players on the park and they will play their hearts out.

However, it remains to be seen whether the team they put out will be capable of coming up with the goods.

It is clear Renegades are but shades of their former selves. They are languishing at the bottom of the table with no clear way out and they lack a unified vision for clawing out of the depths.

In Police they have equal opponents in that the Blues are hardly any better.

They have the numbers -- thanks to the disintegration of the Second XV league -- but what they do not have is experienced players who are able to take the game to the opposition.

There is plenty of heart, commitment and guts to go around but they do not have players with technical know-how who can take them into the winners' circle.

Things were promising enough at the Sandys Boat Club tourney that began the season. The Blues just went down by two points to eventual winners Teachers and it seemed that they could be competitive.

But injuries to player-coach Sean Field-Lament, and the unavailability of the likes of John Clutterbuck -- who has retired -- and Shane Richmond who is injured, have meant that the Blues are again singing that familiar tune.

Consider the following: Police have depended for many years on a core that was built around the tenacious play of Alan Gorbutt, Dave Bird, Calum Welsh, Clutterbuck, Alan Oliver, Jonathan Cassidy and Gareth Davies. With the exception of Oliver and Davies, none of the others are now playing.

Bird sustained a broken arm during a Classic match and both Oliver and Davies have not been able to give the team their full attention. Cassidy is now on the injured list but he is working for the team in a coaching capacity.

This means that many of the second team players are being used -- not be a bad thing because they are keen to play and make their mark but they are sorely lacking in the experience necessary to play their positions well.

Still, more than 12 players turn out consistently each Tuesday and Thursday for practice and as last week's game against Teachers showed, they have a healthy batch of reserves.

Morale is still high and there is a real feeling of optimism despite the less than stellar season.

As Police square off against Renegades this weekend, they are also aware of something else. They will have a good break over the holidays and this will give them a chance to heal, regroup and build some momentum towards the Duckett Memorial game which, after the Nicholl Shield, is the premier event on the rugby calendar.