These two sides have plenty of recent history - including playing in the 2015 Group Seven final, which the Lions won.

And no doubt this weekend's clash at Ron Costello Oval will add to that rivalry.

"Every year we seem to have strong tussles with Shellharbour and I don't expect this weekend to be any different," Lions skipper Nathan Ford said.

"As much as we are looking forward to the game, the most important thing for us is securing the two points, especially as it's our second straight away game to open the season.

"If we can make it two from two on the road, it should set us up nicely in this shortened season."

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For that to happen, Ford knows his revamped forward pack - headlined by premiership-winning props Kal Collins and Tim Moore - will need to aim up against the hosts' side.

"Being the hooker, it's great to be able to play behind a strong forward pack once again," he said.

"The return of Tim [from the Illawarra competition] and Kal [from injury] has really bolstered our pack and added to our depth moving forward.

"We are going to need all of that depth to stand-up on Sunday because Shellharbour always has one of the tougher packs in the competition."

Ford also highlighted the strong play of halves Rixon Russell and Tyran Wishart, as well as recruit Kayne Brennan.

"Kayne's first 20 minutes [against Berry-Shoalhaven Heads] was outstanding - he had a hand in our first four tries," Ford, who knows how important it is for his team to complete their sets on Sunday, said.

"With Tyran having that NRL pre-season experience under his belt, you can see he's taken his game to another level and will really compliment Rixon moving forward - which will no doubt create space for Matt Winchester at the back too."

On the other side of the ledger, Sunday will mark the Sharks first home game of 2020 - in their 100th year.

The enormity of that occasion hasn't been lost on Carroll - whose father Peter also played for the club.

"Everyone was keen to get this season up and running, especially when you consider the way 2019 ended and this year being our centenary," Carroll, who won the 2017 Michael Cronin Medal, said.

"We all had a bounce in our step heading into this year and although it's been a stop-start season, we are all committed to one goal - which is a premiership.

"But that's well down the way and we know we have a job to do on Sunday, which will be a massive game of the club.

"One of the reasons I wanted to play this year was having the honour of leading the boys out in our 100th year - it's going to be a special occasion for all involved."

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Despite recording an opening-round win against Warill-Lake South, Abed Atallah's troops had a slow start to the match at Cec Glenholmes Oval - something they can't afford to happen again on Sunday.

"Last week was extremely tough in those wet conditions, made worse by our slow start, which included four dropped balls early," the halfback said.

"On the flip side, our defence in that first 15 minutes was rock solid, only allowing one try - in my eyes, that period won us the game.

"Gerringong has been the benchmark in Group Seven for the past five or so years.

"They're one of those up and down, not fancy teams that run and tackle hard - they just get the job done and are always really frustrating to play against because they play for the full 80 minutes.

"If we don't come ready to play from the first whistle, they will punish us."

Elsewhere in round two, Nowra-Bomaderry host Stingrays at the Bomaderry Sports Complex, Kiama takes on Warilla-Lake South at the Kiama Showground and Albion Park-Oak Flats battle Berry-Shoalhaven Heads at Centenary Field - with all fixtures kicking off at 3pm Sunday.