Third-placed Wolves knocked Lake Albert off the top of the table last week and will now face new ladder-leaders Henwood Park at Rawlings Park on Saturday night.

A win would draw them level with Henwood, a scenario which would see only the Hawk’s superior goal difference separating the two sides.

Wolves elevated their game to another level with their 3-2 win over Sharks and are hopeful that captain Richard Skidmore, along with Lachlan Bushby and Bai Fahnbullehh, will return to bolster their already firing squad.

But Ayton has stated his side cannot afford to concede late goals, as it did against Lake Albert, if it wants to continue its assault on the competition’s best.

“I was a little unimpressed with the way we shut up shop with 35 minutes to go last week,” he said.

“Once we got up 3-0 we really took our foot off the pedal and they scored two goals on us.

“Those two goals weren’t Lake Albert’s brilliance, they were us taking the pressure off.”

On the other side of the coin, Henwood Park is in blistering form.

Hawks remain unbeaten 14 games into the season, are coming off a 9-2 thrashing of Wagga United and have scored an average of six goals per game over their past four outings.

Elsewhere, Leeton United will have to continue their fight to remain in the top four with a host of players missing through suspension.

United is set to face Tumut at Bull Paddock on Sunday afternoon but will be forced to do so without yellow card recipients Adam Raso, Scott Munro and Frank Alampi.

Raso will also sit out next week after receiving his sixth yellow last week, while Carmelo Trifogli will join his teammates in the naughty corner this week, serving the second-half of his two game red card-induced suspension.

Leeton sits just inside the top four, with Cootamundra only two points behind and looming as favourites in their home clash with Wagga United on Sunday.

Big changes are lurking for South Wagga ahead of its clash with winless Junee at Wagga Showgrounds on Sunday.

Warriors are languishing in seventh spot after coming off a disheartening draw to ninth-placed Young on Saturday, having given up a 2-0 lead.

Team manager Andrew Hull was tight-lipped this week when it came to the specific nature of the shakeup.