Better, but not by much

Surprise, surprise&&&..Wairarapa-Bush were outclassed in their non-championship rugby match with a Hawkes Bay XV at Memorial Park, Masterton yesterday.
In what was just another classic example of the gulf which exists these days between those unions playing at the top level of provincial rugby and those participating in the Heartland championship, the Bay ran in 13 unanswered tries in winning by 77-0.
It wasn't quite as bad scorewise as the 98-0 defeat (16 tries) suffered at the hands of the Wellington XV a couple of weeks earlier but whether that should be seen as a plus is debatable.
The wet, miserable conditions which prevailed for yesterday's game might have been expected to even things up to some degree but all they did in effect was highlight the huge difference in skill levels between the two sides.
Sure, there was the odd occasion when tries went begging for the Bay because of the slippery ball being spilled but mostly their handling and passing was impeccable and they played the game at a tempo way and above what Wairarapa-Bush could ever manage, even on a good day.
The speed of the big Hawkes's Bay forwards around the paddock , in fact,was perhaps the most impressive feature of the entire game with front and middle rowers often accelerating through gaps in a manner of which any midfield back would be proud. And more than that, they were also adept at linking up with their supports once their progress was slowed
The Bay forwards were helped though by the tentativeness of the Wairarapa-Bush defence around the fringes of the rucks and mauls. Invariably the ball carrier was able to work up a full head of steam because of the locals basically waiting for them to make the first move rather than harassing them at the point of contact.
The rolling maul was a launching pad for many of the Bay's most potent attacks and here too their effectiveness was enhanced by the all too often failure of the Wairarapa-Bush forwards to confront them with a fight fire with fire mentality
In the lineouts too the Bay were quick to impose their physical presence with former Wairarapa-Bush rep Stu Smith showing he has lost none of his skills in that area. He took down a number of clean takes in the 40 minutes or so he had on the paddock.
With their pack in such dominant form the Hawke's Bay backs were given ample opportunity to display their attacking wares and they relished the steady stream of quality possession which came their way.Their intent to place the emphasis on attack was obvious from the outset and they ran with purpose, time and again creating overlaps through slick passing and nippy footwork. On a hot, sunny day and a firm surface ones hate to think what havoc they might have created.
The search for positives from the Wairarapa-Bush effort is somewhat akin to looking for a needle in a haystack.
As in the Wellington XV match they spent the large bulk of the game in their own half of the paddock and the number of times they even threatened the Hawkes Bay line could be counted on one hand&.indeed a couple of fingers if we were being totally honest!.
Disruptions caused by injuries suffered in Saturday's club games did not help the forward effort though with the situation being reached in the second half when three hookers were on the paddock at the same time, At hooker then was Joe Harwood with Greytown's Moi Liumaihetau at prop and Greytown's Richard Puddy on the flank.
Harwood's willingness to run the ball back at the opposition whenever he had the chance actually made him one of his team's better performers and another of the old heads in No.8 Mike Spence was also prominent in that respect, particularly from the back of the scrum, which was one area where Wairarapa-Bush actually held their own. Something which suggests in turn that props Kurt Simmonds and Dylan Higgison were solid in that department.
Promising youngster Mike Wilson had his first start for Wairarapa-Bush on the flank but had few, if any, chances to show his considerable attacking skills in broken play.Like fellow flanker Sully Alsop his contribution was more of a defensive kind and they were two of their team's surer tacklers.
The Wairarapa-Bush backs have now gone two games without any prospect of demonstrating their attacking capabilities simply because of a lack of ball. Justin Lett was a late replacement at halfback and made a decent enough fist of things under difficult circumstances and Patrick Rimene was a cool head at first-five.
Josh Maloni (3), Kurt Rowlands (2), Mark Jackman, Chris Eaton, Pama Petia, Rob Evans, Jamie Muir, Peni Tokalece, Jacob Kennedy and Kilifi Fangupo were the try scorers for Hawke's Bay with Mark Jackman (4), Davis Tavita and Jacob Kennedy kicking conversions.
In the curtain-raiser matches the Wairarapa police came from behind to beat their Manawatu counterparts 39-29 while the Hurricanes Co-Ed Cup elimination game between the Wairarapa College and Chanel first XVs was won by Wairarapa College 24-0.
Utility back Dave Drummond was the star of the Wairarapa police team, often causing panic stations in the Manawatu defence with his strong running. Nathan Couch and Jaco Pieterse were two other backs to shine while Greg Peters, Dean Cadwallader and Kerry Fitzgerald were prominent up front.
The college match was expected to be somewhat of a one-sided affair with Wairarapa College calling the shots but while they held a huge territorial advantage the stout defence of Chanel made them earn every point they attained.Wiremu Grace Thomas Kainuku , Cody Whittaker and Reihana Brown stood out for Wairarapa College while No.8 Kirk Tufuga and front rower Joshy Nicho had big games for Chanel.