Clash of the captains

Two of the most punishing runners in Wairarapa-Bush club rugby will lead their teams into the grand final of the premier division competition at Memorial Park, Masterton on Saturday, Gary Caffell reports.
Eketahuna No.8 Steve Olds and Carterton prop Joe Harwood relish every opportunity to take the game to their opposition and they are sure to be prominent figures in a competition decider which promises to provide an enthralling contest.
The two captains have huge respect for each other's ability as a ball runner with Olds recognising Harwood as perhaps the most lethal attacker of all in a Carterton pack chockful of players who excel in broken play situations and Harwood noting that whenever Eketahuna needed momentum up front it was inevitably Olds who provided it.
Both skippers agree that Saturday's grand final should be a closely-fought affair with the two meetings in preliminary round play providing very different results. Eketahuna won the first played at Carterton 15-10 and Carterton bounced back to win the second at Eketahuna 19-3.
"We know it's going to be touch and go??..if we don't turn up with our best game we will come second," Olds said.
And those sentiments are echoed by Harwood who said that anything less than a totally committed effort from his side would mean certain defeat.
Eketahuna, of course, have become a regular feature in recent grand finals, having won the last three in a row, but it's been a harder row to hoe in 2006. In fact, they only just made it into the semi-finals, finishing fourth equal with Marist on competition points but edging them out on a countback.
Typically, Olds provides a frank assessment of why Eketahuna have struggled to play to their potential this season.
"I think it's true to say that after winning three years in a row some of the guys didn't quite have the same motivation to get up and going and so it's been a bit more of a struggle," he said. "And to be fair some of us more experienced guys have to take the blame for that - we haven't always given it our best shot."
At the same time though Olds always believed Eketahuna had the team to make a fourth successive grand final and he was delighted with the manner of their crushing 30-13 victory over Gladstone in their semi-final at Memorial Park on Saturday.
That win came after Gladstone had raced out to an early 10-0 advantage and threatened to take control of proceedings.
Olds concedes the poor start was a concern but he was always optimistic that once Eketahuna got themselves organised they could get back into the game.
"We just didn't have the ball early on and we weren't structured enough on defence, we gave them too much room to move and they opened us up," he said.
With Olds himself very much at the forefront of the action-he scored two of his team's four tries- Eketahuna dominated the last hour of play to such an extent that, in the end, their winning margin was flattering to Gladstone
Olds said the secret to Eketahuna's revival was their superiority in the forward exchanges and he paid tribute to their tight five, in particular, who clearly outplayed Gladstone in the set pieces.
"Out front row and middle row did a great job, especially in the scrums,"Olds said. "It gives the confidence a lift when you are dominating there and we were able to do that."
Harwood admits that Eketahuna's proven ability to rise to the big occasion makes them an even more dangerous foe come Saturday's grand final but he says his own team is "very excited" about the prospect of winning the premier division title for the first time since 1999.
"What's gone before doesn't mean a lot once the game starts, it's all down to who handles the pressure best on the day," he said. "We know we are capable of winning and now it's a matter of going out there and doing the business."
Harwood was pleased with the way Carterton ground out their 13-10 win over Pioneer in their semi-final match at Carterton with Pioneer providing the expected stern opposition in all phases of the game.
"It was tough going and we had to work hard for everything we got," he said. "And we're anticipating nothing different this coming weekend, it's going to be another huge battle again."
With no fewer than six past or present Wairarapa-Bush reps in their pack it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to predict that Carterton's game plan on Saturday will revolve around dominating the forward exchanges and Harwood doesn't deny that fact.
But at the same time he labels the Carterton backs as the "unsung heroes" and is confident they will do a good job for their team as well.
"We keep hearing how strong we are in the forwards but the backs have run in some good tries and they shouldn't be under-estimated either," he said. "If it's on to move the ball we won't be afraid to do it."
Olds is well aware of the strength in the Carterton pack but he says Eketahuna won't be shying away from taking them in that area of the match.
"Generally the team which wins the forward battle wins the game and we believe our forwards can come up trumps for us," he said. "Its all a matter of organisation, if we work together we should do Ok"
Having two of the best playmakers in the Wairarapa-Bush region, halfback Hamish Mckenzie and fullback Simanu Simanu, is a definite plus for Eketahuna but Olds is mindful they can only display their skills if they are given a reasonable amount of quality ball to play with.
"Again it comes down to the forwards. The backs can't shine unless we front up there. That has to be the priority for us," he said.