The Canberra Vikings are determined to play their best match of the year against the Melbourne Rising at Viking Park on Saturday.
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The Vikings are second on the ladder but have been disappointing at home, with a 60-28 thrashing by the NSW Country Eagles and a narrow victory last Sunday against the winless Western Sydney Rams.
Scrum-half Joe Powell said an increased physicality at the breakdown will contribute to a more convincing game.
"We haven't really put the performance we wanted to at home yet so hopefully it comes this weekend," he said.
"We're just slightly off in a few areas and one of them is the breakdown, when we get a few phases together is when we put points on."
An improvement at the breakdown will create continuity with attack and allow the zippy Powell to be damaging in offence.
"That will probably help me if we put phases together, I feel like I haven't been able to get into the game."
Assistant coach Tim Sampson said head coach Wayne Southwell had spoken about the importance of an energetic start against the Rising.
"We spoke about it a lot at the start of the week and the slow starts we've been having, so it was a topic of discussion but I think the guys will be all right this week," said Sampson.
"It starts with preparation and it's not just Sunday pre-game, it's got to be throughout the week in the training sessions."
The Rising have caught the attention of the rugby community this NRC season with big, brutal hits, but Sampson said the Vikings' star-studded forward pack is excited for the challenge.
"They're pretty big and physical up front with a quality back row so we're expecting a heap to be going on at the breakdown," he said.
NRC ROUND 5 Sunday: Canberra Vikings v Melbourne Rising, 1pm Viking Park
Canberra Vikings side: 1. Faalalei Sione, 2. Josh Mann-Rea, 3. Leslie Leulua'iali'i-Makin, 4. Blake Enever, 5. Sam Carter, 6. Tom Staniforth, 7. Jarrad Butler (c), 8. OJ Noa, 9. Joe Powell, 10. Robbie Coleman, 11. Lausii Taliauli, 12. Jordan Jackson-Hope, 13. Andrew Smith, 14. Andrew Robinson, 15. Isaac Thompson. Reserves: 16. Connal McInerney, 17. Sione Taula, 18. Ray Dobson, 19. Dean Oakman-Hunt, 20. Jordan Smiler, 21. Brent Hamlin, 22. Nick Jooste, 23. Eli Sinoti.