Commitment, skills key to Kendall?s team

Wairarapa senior men's cricket selector Dick Kendall says he is enjoying the pressures involved in the job.
He will name his side tomorrow night for the first of the Hawke Cup qualifying games to be played against Wanganui at the Park Oval in Masterton this coming weekend and accepts his decisions will not have unanimous approval.
"I guess I will probably make a few friends and lose a few at the same time," he said.
"But then that's what selecting is all about. You can't please everyone."
Kendall's formula for what he hopes is a representative season which ends with Wairarapa gaining the right to challenge for the Hawke Cup is to not only select players who he sees as being capable of being competitive at that level but who have the "cricket maturity" to go with their skills.
"They have to be able to absorb pressure themselves and, conversely, be capable of exerting pressure on their opposition," he said.
"And all of them have to be totally committed to having the Hawke Cup residing in the Wairarapa."
Kendall noted that over previous years the Wairarapa rep squad has consisted of a number of players recognised more for their all-round skills rather than as specialised batsmen or bowlers.
His own philosophy is to place greater emphasis on having players specialising in either department.
"If they are capable of doing both it will not necessarily increase their chances of selection," he said.
For Kendall a successful unit includes players who are prepared to work hard for the team, who have mature cricket habits and who can read a game.
Age is less relevant with his view being that if a player is considered good enough to compete at that level then he should be there, no matter how experienced or inexperienced he might be.
Indications are that Kendall's line-up for the Wanganui game will contain a number of players still in their early teens and while Kendall himself wouldn't confirm their selection today he agreed there was an "exciting group" of youngsters in contention for places in the side.
"Providing they fit the criteria they are in with a chance. It's as simple as that," he said.
Just who will lead the Wairarapa team in their Hawke Cup qualifying games this season will also be confirmed tomorrow night with Kendall emphasising that whoever was in charge had to have the respect of his fellow players and, just as importantly, had to respect them as well.
Kendall was disappointed that a "friendly" organised for his Wairarapa squad against a Hawke's Bay XI in Napier on Sunday was cancelled because of wet weather.
A number of players included in his side for that game could be labelled as being on the fringes of Hawke Cup selection and ,consequently, would have boosted their prospects with strong performances.
Also cancelled because of Sunday's inclement weather was the Central Districts women's competition match between Wairarapa and Hawke's Bay which was to be played at the Park Oval in Masterton.
Wairarapa's second match in the CD series is scheduled for this coming Sunday and will be against Manawatu at Palmerston North.
It will be a difficult assignment for the Wairarapa team which have had a limited preparation due to the side consisting mainly of college students who have been involved in exams and have not been available to attend training sessions.
The Wairarapa team is: Justine Robertson, Adrienne Bain, Nicole Bouton, Elizabeth Perry, Wendy Hull, Morgan Terry, Pip Tocker, Rachel Mawson, Courtney Liggins, Taasha Henson, Pip Lynch, Anna Mahe.