5.7 engine build

[claylais]

hello all. i am a newbie so please be gentle. a buddy of mine brought me an engine to assemble. this engine block was an automobile engine 5.7. i am an auto mechanic and have built hundreds of engines during my 25 year career. but have never built a marine engine and to throw another wrench in the works my buddy tells me this is a counter rotating engine. anyway the sticky part for me is that someone has told my buddy that the pistons should be installed with the notches towards the rear of the engine since it is going to be turning opposite of the normal rotation....i called a few of the local machine shops and got three different answers. so i thought i would ask here. any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks, clay