Another road trip for the Bay and another defeat. Mysteries abounded at Carisbrook on Saturday night.

Would Otago be safe from demotion if the Highlanders were not based in Dunedin? The stands were a barren wasteland.

How do Otago field two All Blacks who had played a Tri-Nations game the week before while our sole All Black was rested despite not playing a single Tri-Nations minute?

Is this the first time the two Ben Smiths have been on the same field for opposing teams? While our own Ben Smith is a solid family saloon car, the Otago version is a sleek sports car and was a pain in the Bay neck all night.

Will we always play like headless chooks once we fall a few points behind?  Some clear thinking in that last 20 minutes might have seen us playing to get some territory and applying some pressure. Running it from everywhere is not a Bay strength.

Should the Fan stop praising players in this column? After last week’s ringing endorsement of Phil Burleigh, he had a nice to forget in Carisbrook.

Will Luke Braid be getting a reputation as a dirty player? His yellow card in the Tasman game was absurd but his dangerous tackle against Otago deserved a yellow and could have earned him a red.

Have the Steamers run out of steam? After our great start last season, we spluttered to an embarrassing quarter-final defeat. Tanerau Latimer looked absolutely exhausted 12 months ago so the Fan hopes a rested Latimer brings some zip to the side on Friday.

Just how many reasons are there to beat the Magpies on Friday night? Well firstly we are the real Bay and we need to prove it. The Fan was in Napier last season when they walloped us and was in the Domain a couple of months ago when they savaged us again. I cannot cope with a trio of such defeats within 12 months.

Hawke’s Bay has now vaulted above the Real Bay in the table now due to the bonus point issue and a win for them on Friday will surely seal their top four spot while consigning us to mid-table and mediocrity. The TAB reckons that we are the favourites and they don’t make their profits by setting these odds incorrectly.

As the end of the round robin draws near, three wins from four should be enough for the Bay to make the semi-finals although there are no guarantees. Hawke’s Bay and Southland have Canterbury to play and there are other games where teams in contention will drop points.