Celebration weekend for Eketahuna

COMING THROUGH: Eketahuna triple centurion Brendan Walker on the charge for Wairarapa-Bush.PHOTOS/FILE

Queen's Birthday Weekend is set to be something special for the Eketahuna Rugby Club.

A busy programme of events has been organised for their 125th jubilee celebrations and with 300 people expected to take part in the festivities club president Dennis Dougherty is predicting that after a "friendly" match between a Jubilee XV and an Invitation XV is completed early on Sunday afternoon some "very tired" bodies will start thinking about wending their way home.

"Eketahuna is famous for its hospitality and we plan to provide plenty of that," Dougherty said.

With all Wairarapa-Bush club matches suspended for the weekend, the Eketahuna premier men's side, which lies a close second in the Tui Cup main championship, will turn out against the Manawatu-based Masseys Rams in a "friendly" that will kick off at 2.30pm on Saturday.

As many as five or six of the Eketahuna squad are likely to be involved in Wairarapa-Bush's non-championship fixture with Horowhenua-Kapiti at Featherston on the same day, but with their senior thirds keen to help out they will have little difficulty in finding a full complement for their jubilee match. A star act is sure to be prop Brendan Walker, who has made more than 300 appearances in the Eketahuna colours, and is still one of the most feared scrummagers in the whole of the Wairarapa-Bush region.

Also playing home games on Saturday are the Eketahuna colts and women's teams. The colts, this season coached by former Wairarapa-Bush age group mentor Mark Brown, will play a Manawatu competition match against Linton Army with a 2pm start while the women, fresh from a victory over defending Manawatu champions Feilding last weekend, take on Wellington side, Old Boys University, in a combined Manawatu-Wellington club match, starting at 12.45pm.

Four of the Eketahuna women's team, No8 Katie Turnbull, hooker Kahli Tipene, flanker Sam Tipene and first-five Rebecca Mahoney, have been named in Manawatu's 2014 NPC squad.

Sunday's action at Eketahuna will include JAB matches in the morning the Jubilee XV v Invitation XV match in the afternoon, the teams for which were still to be confirmed.

What is known is Dean Goodin will have the whistle and his assistant referees will be Pat Baucke and Shaun Lynes, the latter on "exchange" from the far coast in Australia.

The full draw for rugby matches to be played in Wairarapa-Bush on Saturday is:

Heartland non-championship game: Wairarapa-Bush v Horowhenua-Kapiti, Featherston No 1 at 2.30pm (Alistair Payne; Shay O'Gorman and Scott Andrew).

Premiers: Eketahuna v Massey Rams, Eketahuna No 1 at 2.30pm (Andrew Stringer; Shaun Lynes and Pat Baucke).

Manawatu women's premier: Eketahuna v Old Boys University, Eketahuna No 1 at 12.45pm (Dean Goodin).

Manawatu colts: Eketahuna v Linton Army, Eketahuna No 2 at 2pm (Shaun Lynes; Pat Baucke and C Henricksen).

Secondary schools: Junior grade: Chanel v Wairarapa Gold, Memorial Park No 1 at 10am (Baden Whale).

Kuranui College v Wairarapa Blue, Kuranui College No 1 at 10am (Bruce Tomlin).