The Shoals knocked off perennial Illawarra Rugby powerhouse Vikings last weekend 30-19.

“I thought it was a great win for us, especially at this crucial part of the season,” Hayes said.

“We had a great combination between both our forwards and backs.

“Our play at the breakdown was the best I have seen in a long time, which is very pleasing.

“The continuity of having the same backline two weeks in a row was a huge bonus for us.

“It was probably the first time the team has gelled like that, with great talk and lead-up play.”

The Shoals sit in sixth place, just one point behind the fifth placed Vikings, so another win against Shamrocks is crucial.

“We are all looking forward to the challenge that Shamrocks presents,” Hayes said.

“We had a good win up there earlier in the year, despite them being a little depleted.

“But if we can feed off the momentum from last week, I’m confident we can do a job.

“It’s up to us to keep improving and produce a better performance than we did last week.

“With most of the same team available, including a couple to return, we should even be a little stronger.”