Eketahuna looking for revenge in return clash

Competition leaders Eketahuna will be holding nothing back when they take on Greytown-Tuhirangi in a Wairarapa-Bush senior first division club rugby match at Pirinoa tomorrow.
The Bush boys have lost just the one game to date this season and that was a one-point defeat at the hands of Greytown-Tuhirangi in their first round encounter.
Since then Eketahuna have been clearly the more consistent of the two teams but Greytown-Tuhirangi have still done enough to suggest that a finals berth is well within their capabilities.
The combined side is probably the only first division side with the forward power to justifiably fancy their chances of at least gaining parity with the powerful Eketahuna pack in the all-important battle for possession.
In Jon Tanner, Dylan Higginson and under-rated hooker Bruce McKenzie they have a formidable front row whose solidness at scrum time played a big part in their team's narrow but deserved win over Gladstone last weekend.
They also have one of the better lineout forwards in the region in Norm Henricksen and in No.8 Sylvanus Iro they have a player who has been in truly outstanding form, both at club and representative level.
So much so that one hopes the Wairarapa-Bush union is already being proactive in ensuring that some of the bigger provinces don't lure him away before their NPC third division programme is up and running.
Iro won't have everything his own way tomorrow though as in Steve Olds Eketahuna too has a back row forward who relishes the more confrontational aspects of the game.
It's the same in the front row. Eketahuna are well served there too through the efforts of rep players Angus McMillan, Rob Foreman and Brendan Walker and they will be keen to strut their stuff against Tanner and company, as will promising lock Tim Iro in the lineouts against Henricksen.
By the way Iro is a brother of Sylvanus but don't expect brotherly love to play any part in this one!
Where Eketahuna will be anticipating having a decent advantage on Greytown-Tuhirangi is in the backs. Halfback Hamish McKenzie is a key figure there with his ability to pierce holes in the opposition defences around the fringes of the rucks and mauls and Simanu Simanu and Jorgi Tamani are equally dangerous attackers out wide.
Give them an inch and they will take a mile.
It would be folly though to under-estimate the Greytown-Tuhirangi rearguard.Bart Viguurs, Mark Childs and the Isaac brothers all have the skills to make a nuisance of themselves and it will be interesting to note what tactics they employ.
Will they concentrate on keeping the ball close to their forwards and look for them to batter Eketahuna into submission or will they risk playing a more free-flowing style of game?
Whatever they decide an Eketahuna win does appeal as the most likely result?but not by much.