Daniell boosts Wairarapa?s chances

Wairarapa are poised to be the "dark horses" at the annual quinrangular senior interprovincial tennis tournament to be played at Massey University, Palmerston North, from this Friday night through to Sunday afternoon.
Most pundits will have them in the easy-beat category, after they tailed the field home last year, but any opposing side which takes them for granted could be in for a shock.
Prompting growing confidence in Wairarapa's chances of filling at least a top-three position, in an event which also features Wellington, Hutt Valley, Kapi Mana and Manawatu, is news that Marcus Daniell will spearhead their playing-line up.
A former Rathkeale College student who now attends St Kentigens College, in Auckland, Daniell would be ranked among the top 30 players in the country, and has achieved some excellent results in recent times in both singles and doubles play on the junior ITF circuit. Daniell has, of course, played for the Wairarapa senior reps in the past but selector Steve Hurley said he is obviously a stronger player now, both physically and mentally, and could be expected to win all his singles matches at the Massey tourney.
"It's exciting to have someone of his calibre at the top of the order. It will be a big lift for everybody involved in the team," he said.
The availability of Daniell means that usual No 1 in the singles for Wairarapa, Jono Hurley, will this time take up the No 2 spot.
A fine player in his own right, Hurley actually played for the Wellington senior reps just a few weeks back, and is regularly at No 1 in the singles for the Wellington club in the capital's premier men's competition.
Former Opaki player Baden Stevenson, who these days plays for the Lower Hutt club in the Wellington competition and actually has a win over Hurley to his credit already this season, will give Wairarapa additional strength in the No 3 singles berth and a bevy of players could fill the No 4 position.
That player will come from an experienced group consisting of Geoff Janse (Pirinoa), Geoff McKay (Masterton), Russell Broughton (Opaki), Luke Atkinson (Pirinoa) and Mike Jackson (Opaki)
But the four who miss out are almost certain to be involved in doubles play in each of the matches, as the tournament rules allow for changes in personnel to be made there and selector Hurley is aware the hectic schedule, and the fact Wairarapa don't have the bye until Sunday afternoon, will severely test the fitness of his side
"I think it's fair to say that fitness has been an issue for us in the past but hopefully that won't be the case this time," he said..
In the women's section too Wairarapa will be strongly represented from a numerical viewpoint with seven players being named.
Leading the way in the singles will be Kate Wyeth (Opaki), Ashleigh Gane (Masterton) and former Central Districts rep Leanne Sweeney, who has joined up with Pirinoa this season after making spasmodic appearances for Martinborough over the previous couple of years.
St Matthews Collegiate duo Charlotte Meo and Rosie Aitkenhead are also in the squad, along with other talented youngsters in Natasha Robinson (Pirinoa) and Bridget Needham (Opaki).
Wairarapa's best-ever finish in the quinrangular tourney is a third and Hurley is optimistic of them at least replicating that effort in 2006.
"Nobody is going to rate us too highly but we could catch a few by surprise, that's the objective anyway," he said.
Meanwhile, Pirinoa justified their favouritism for the Wairarapa regional one tennis title this season when they defeated defending champions Masterton 8-1 at Pirinoa last Saturday.
The powerful Pirinoa line-up ? chockful of past and present Wairarapa senior representatives ? dominated the singles and doubles, with Masterton's only win coming at the top of the men's singles where Geoff McKay secured a three-set victory over Geoff Janse.
Otherwise it was one-way traffic with Pirinoa winning all other matches in straight sets.
Results, Pirinoa names first:
Men's singles: Geoff Janse lost to Geoff McKay 3-6, 6-3, 3-6; Mike Jackson beat Kirk Collins 6-2, 6-0; Luke Atkinson beat Steve Hurley 6-0, 6-4; Tim Pickering beat Nigel Tomlin 6-2, 6-4.
Women's singles: Leanne Sweeney beat Ashleigh Gane 6-2, 6-2; Natasha Robinson beat Clemmie Barton 6-1, 6-1.
Men's doubles: Janse and Atkinson beat McKay and Hurley 6-2, 6-2.
Combined doubles: Jackson and Sweeney beat Collins and Gane 6-2, 6-2, Pickering and Robinson beat Tomlin and Barton 6-1, 6-2.