The Hunters have made a poor start to the season with one win from six games and coach Darren Nichols said his side really needed to win both games this weekend to be in contention for the play-offs.

"This will be a season-defining weekend for us," he said. "The trouble is we've got our starting two-man out and two other guys coming back from injury that haven't been able to train all week."

John Martin and Richard Vandersnoek are the two players returning from injury for tonight's clash with the Spiders at The Brickpit in Thornleigh.

The Hunters will stay in Sydney tonight and play Hills Hornets in Baulkham Hills tomorrow.

Neil Goffet