Five teams vie for two semis spots

No fewer than five teams will have their semi-final aspirations very much on their minds when matches in the Wairarapa-Bush premier division rugby competition continue either tonight or tomorrow.
Defending champions East Coast (61pts) and Masterton Red Star (55pts) have already done enough to make the top four but for Pioneer (47pts), Martinborough (44pts), Gladstone (43pts), Greytown (40pts) and Marist (40pts) the battle for the remaining two spots is on in earnest.
And with only two series of preliminary round matches still to be played defeat this weekend would be the end of the road for most of them.
Greytown will, of course, know whether they are still in the semi-final race earlier than the others as they are scheduled to
play Eketahuna under lights at Eketahuna tonight.
Some would say this is a risky move for Greytown because of Eketahuna's better knowledge of the lighting but that argument has already been dismissed by Greytown coach Stacey Grant, who is quick to point out his team trains under lights on a regular basis. Therefore it would not be seen by him to be a relevant excuse for defeat.
Greytown's greater all-round capabilities should give them the edge in this one but they will need to be wary of an Eketahuna side who have nothing to play for but pride.
The likelihood is they will throw caution to the wind and with Greytown having to handle the extra pressure of requiring not only the four points for the win but the extra bonus point for scoring four or more tries the possibility of an upset result certainly can't be dismissed.
Marist take on Puketoi at Pongaroa tomorrow and here too it's a case of one team, in this case Marist, desperate for the maximum five points and the other having pride as their main driving force.
Marist have been strengthened of late through the return of talented duo, utility forward Corey Reid and halfback Api Matenga, and with player-coach Nathan Couch running the ship from first-five and James Goodger regularly starring from the middle row they now have the look of a serious title contender about them. Puketoi, as usual, will be tough up front but it will be a surprise if Marist don't achieve their objective.
Gladstone travel to Whareama to take on East Coast in what should be an absolute humdinger of a match.
Gladstone have been steadily making ground on the front-runners after a slow start to the season but they are going to find it tough going against an East Coast side who will appreciate how dangerous they could be if they make the semis, and will want to dash their hopes here and now.
For Gladstone to successfully meet this challenge they will need to gain ascendancy up front as East Coast does have the greater attacking flair in the backs and will be keen to utilise it. East Coast won their first-round clash 34-18, it will be a heck of a lot closer this time.
Speaking of first-round clashes, that between Pioneer and Martinborough had only one point in it, 13 to 12, and another close, tense encounter seems certain when they meet again at Martinborough tomorrow.


Both teams actually play the same hustle, bustle type of rugby and with their propensity to score from broken play whoever controls possession best is likely to prevail.
 
Masterton Red Star and Carterton do battle in the feature match at Memorial Park and while Masterton Red Star have already made the semis they will be keen to secure the victory which would guarantee them home advantage there. Carterton do have the forwards to make it interesting but the pace of the Masterton Red Star backs should be the deciding factor.
On the women's rugby front Eketahuna will earn themselves a home semi-final in the Wellington premier division competition if they can beat Oriental-Rongotai at Eketahuna tomorrow. They gave competition favourites Norths a fright last weekend and while Ories play a spoiling type of rugby which makes them troublesome Eketahuna should have the edge on them. Kick off there is at 1pm, the same time as which the Eketahuna colts take on Varsity Ag in a Manawatu competition match.