Entertainment the name of the game

Most spectators will agree they got great value for money at the Barbarians versus New Zealand Maori try-fest at Whangarei on Saturday evening but one of them got more than he bargained for.
Wellsford prop Ross Wright turned up to watch the first match of the Maori centenary series only to end up facing the Maori haka in a Barbarians' jersey after he was roped into the squad. 
The Barbarians' Damien Varley, the only Irish international to show up for the match after prop Tom Court was called in to the test team as injury cover, tweaked his back during the warm-up and Wright was the first to answer Baa-Baas coach Bryce Woodward's call.
"I was up in the stand and got a call and Bryce's number came up and he asked me where I was.
 "I told him, then he asked me if I'd had a few beers and I said no, so he asked me to come down and when I got there he asked if I wanted to jump on the bench," Wright said.
He accepted immediately and was soon wearing the red Barbarian strip and preparing for the national anthem.
"So I found myself out there for the national anthem and the haka which I'll never forget.
"It would have been good to get on for a run but being on the bench was still pretty good," he said.
While both teams had just a few days together to prepare for the match, defence was often exposed by some great attacking play with both sides giving the ball air on almost every available occasion.
The last-minute match-winning try by Maori winger Hosea Gear was a fitting end to the nine-try crowd pleaser, giving the Maori a 37-31 victory to start their three-match series.
Maori coach Jamie Joseph said the narrow win was a confidence booster for the centenary tour but they still had a lot of work to do before their match against the Irish in Rotorua this weekend.
"I thought defensively we were pretty average today, the kick-chase was a little unorganised and players like Rene Ranger beat us one-on-one ... but we have to move on from here and we know now what we have to work on," he said.
There were also obvious problems with the set-piece, with the scrum and the lineout both struggling against the big Barbarians' pack.
Woodward was "gutted" with the final result but said he was pleased with the occasion which doubled as the official opening of the new Northland Events Centre, now called Toll Stadium.
"I know the New Zealand Barbarians would be keen to make a match with the Maori an annual event if they could because they want to raise the profile of their club," he said.
There were several factors, including cost, to be taken into account but because the Barbarians players played for the love of the game, not for money,  that could be a positive factor for the NZRU, he added.
Barbarian skipper Alando Soakai said with no New Zealand A side this season, a Barbarians' fixture gave some of the team, who were on the fringes of test rugby, a chance to "have a crack" at making the All Blacks.
"Even though we only had a small window to prepare for today's match, playing an international team is right up there and I think it's an opportunity for the Baa-Baas to be around for the next couple of years," Soakai said.
Ranger's performance was hard to miss at centre, while Colin Slade, Alby Mathewson and Jamie Mackintosh also showed their readiness for higher honours. Woodward said he was also pleased with some of the experimental selections  like Ben Smith at second five-eighth and John Afoa at hooker.
"We all know how good John is around the field and the question mark was going to be lineouts ... he missed his first one but after that I think he went okay," the coach said.
The other stand-outs were young second rower Josh Bekhuis and the rest of the tight five, who at times showed a clear edge over the Maori.