B boys in line for competition glory

The Wairarapa-Bush senior B rugby side are on target to win their regional competition.
A convincing 28-6 win over Wanganui B at Wanganui on Saturday catapulted them to the top of the points table and another victory over Poverty Bay B at Masterton this coming weekend will seal the title for them.
The success over Wanganui was doubly sweet for Wairarapa-Bush as they had lost to them at home earlier in the month in a match where they were clearly the better side in the first half but dropped their effort in the second.
Coach Steve Thompson admits a similar scenario could have been on the cards on Saturday with Wairarapa-Bush having a brisk breeze behind them in the first half and despite having the edge in territory and possession going to the break only 6-0 up.
"We had done enough to have a good lead but we didn't take advantage of our opportunities," Thompson said.
The tactics for Wairarapa-Bush in the second half were to play a fairly conservative style of rugby with the focus being on retaining ball for long periods.
And they did exactly that, wearing Wanganui down and ending the game comprehensive winners and having scored four tries to boot
Norm Henricksen, Nathan Rolls and Vernon Boyce were the standouts in a Wairarapa-Bush pack which more than held their own in the set pieces of lineout and scrum and who were just as effective in the rucks and mauls.
The inside combination of Charlie Bargh and Te Maika Mason impressed amongst the backs, choosing their options well on both attack and defence.
Aaron Morrisey, Norm Henricksen, Duncan Rutherford and Kingi Kaiwai were the try scorers for Wairarapa-Bush..
Meanwhile, the Wairarapa-Bush colts rugby side were beaten 3-0 by Hawke's Bay in their match at Taradale on Saturday.
Aiming for promotion to the A section of their Hurricanes colts tournament next year after winning the B section the previous weekend., Wairarapa-Bush gave every bit as good as they received but a penalty goal in the last quarter was enough to give Hawke's Bay the win.
Wairarapa-Bush coach Mark Rutene described the loss as "gutting", saying his team had gone close to scoring tries on at least three occasions while Hawke's Bay hardly threatened their line.
"We probably did enough to win so it was gutting for everyone that we came up short," he said. "But at least we showed we had the players to compete at the higher level."
Rutene said turnovers cost Wairarapa-Bush dearly with the team often going through three or four phases and then turning the ball over just as they were about to open up the Bay defence.
"We'd go 20 metres or more and then lose it. Our protection of the ball wasn't good enough,' he said
Front rowers Jessie Williams and Jono Owen had strong games for Wairarapa-Bush up front as did lock Ken Scott and flanker Jared Hawkins while the three-quarter line of Trent Vatselias, Nic Olsen and Richard McGregor looked dangerous whenever possession came their way.