The talented left-sided midfielder, who has played 93 national league matches, has a calf strain which could rule him out.
Coburn would add power and experience if selected, yet would set more problems for Otago coach Malcolm Fleming as he selects his travelling squad.
"We are allowed 18 seats on the plane, but after you deduct myself, manager Aaron Burgess, two goalkeepers and the required two youth players, that leaves 12 senior outfielders, which all of a sudden seems pretty tight," Fleming said.
Hawkes Bay snatched a late 1-0 win over Manawatu last week and has an intimidating home record against Otago of four straight home wins in recent matches.
Otago overcame a difficult start last week, conceding an early goal until the team found its feet at Tahuna Park, but the squad showed great spirit to battle back against a slick-passing Waikato side.
Fleming's task will be to engineer a kick-start tomorrow, taking the match to Hawkes Bay, which copped criticism from coach Bob Sova for a sluggish start last week before assistant coach Chris McIvor put on his boots and scored a late winner.
Last week, several Otago players showed their lack of match sharpness, but Fleming is confident the cobwebs have gone and the team will play to its potential.
"We definitely have to improve. Last week there was too much running with the ball and too many passes went astray. If we do that in Napier, it will be a real uphill battle.
"It is too easy to fall behind in an eight-team competition. Waitakere already has nine points, so we want to get the show on the road this weekend and get some points on the board."
Hawkes Bay coach Sova also has his problems. Cole Peverley is suspended after two yellow cards last week, and former Seattle striker Jarrod Smith is injured.
"Firstly, we need to win the battle," Sova said.
"Then we must be getting ourselves more frequently into goal-scoring opportunities. Although we were pleased with three points last week, we didn't create most of our chances until the final quarter of the match."
Likely to fill the Bay's gaps are the identical Liverpool-born Doran twins, Pete and Phil, who are only separated by their yellow or white boots.
Local fans will recall Dunedin's identical Scholten twins, Jack and John, who confused many a referee in their playing career during the 1980s.
In the southern conference of the national youth league, the match of the round is tomorrow's South Island derby between Canterbury United and Otago United in Christchurch at 11am.
OTAGO UTD v HAWKES BAY
Napier, tomorrow, 2pm
Otago: Adam Highfield, Tristan Prattley, Matt Thomas, Hayden Gunn, Tom Sadd, Nathan Knox, Paul Seaman, Anthony Hancock, Phil Ruggles, Andy Coburn, James Reichwein, Cam Burns, Morgan Day, Harley Rodeka, Tim Horner, Tom Connor, Liam Lockart, Matt Brook.
Hawkes Bay: Richard Gillespie, Phil Doran, Marvin Eakins, Bill Robertson, Matt Hastings, Leon Birnie, Peter Doran, Dan O'Brien, Andy Bevin, Dan Wilson, Marama Thompson, Joachim Rande, Adam Chandler, Jonathan Taylor, Dan Ball, Chris McIvor, Shaun Peta.
