Wairarapa-Bush senior B rugby side kicked off their 2012 representative season in fine style with a commanding 33-7 win over Horowhenua-Kapiti B at Memorial Park, Masterton, on Saturday.
Scoring five tries to one, Wairarapa-Bush were probably not as dominant through the first 40 minutes as their 20-7 halftime advantage might have suggested but they clearly had the better of the second spell.
It was a player very much on the fringes of the Heartland championship squad in Pioneer first-five Tipene Haira who was the standout individual for Wairarapa-Bush.
His hefty punting was a huge plus in tight defensive situations and he made several probing runs on attack, one of which ended in him scoring a spectacular try that had everything - a dummy, jinky footwork and the pace to regain a grubber kick put behind the last line of cover defence.
Both halfbacks used by Wairarapa-Bush, Joseph Sio and Cody Whittaker, had strong games with Whittaker also showing a handy turn of pace when placed on the wing in the first half. Big Gladstone prop Jake Ross was also prominent in the Wairarapa-Bush pack.
