Good basics key to winning

Wairarapa-Bush will apply the KISS philosophy in their NPC third division semi-final rugby match with Buller at Memorial Park, Masterton tomorrow.
Keep It Simple Stupid has long been a theme touted by coaches of sporting teams preparing for a big occasion and Wairarapa-Bush coach Peter Russell is sure to be no different in that regard.
Russell will know that if Wairarapa-Bush stick to the basics they should beat Buller, and beat them comfortably as well.
But he will also be aware that if their concentration lapses as it has done in some of their previous games this season then Buller has the ammunition to capitalise.
Indeed that was proved in the very first game of the current NPC season when Wairarapa-Bush travelled to Westport with everybody expecting them to beat the pants off Buller only to suffer what was to be their only defeat of the preliminary rounds.
The big lesson from that match for Wairarapa-Bush was that Buller are a side at their best when feeding on opposition mistakes.
From all accounts their swarming style of play created frustration amongst the Wairarapa-Bush ranks and by losing their composure they "bombed" a number of tries, any one of which could have actually won them the game.
And ,what.s more,they conceded tries at the other end of the paddock with uncharacteristic defensive errors.
It is encouraging for Wairarapa-Bush fans that since that game their composure has improved markedly and they have, in fact, become very good at capitalising on opposition mistakes themselves.
A number of their most spectacular tries have come when the opposing team has turned over ball and the opportunity to counter attack has been grabbed with both hands.
Coach Russell has already gone on record as saying that the key to victory tomorrow l rests with the Wairarapa-Bush forwards gaining a fair measure of superiority in the set pieces, and achieving similar success in their pursuit of first and second phase possession.
Russell was not happy with the unity shown by his forwards last weekend against Mid-Canterbury when they too often hunted in ones or twos rather than as a pack and the concentration at practice this week has been on getting that right.
If their work ethic is what it should be it's hard to imagine the Buller eight shaping up well against a scrum spearheaded by in-form front rowers Joe Harwood, Rob Foreman and Dylan Higgison and a lineout in which.the spring heeled Tomasi Kedarabuka has been a revelation.
Rumours of at least one northern union chasing Kedarabuka's services for next season is hardly a surprise for in game after game he has been a standout player for Wairarapa-Bush, coupling his lineouts skills with an extremely high work rate around the paddock.
In fact, if tackle count statistics were kept the odds are that Kedarabuka would be rivalling openside flanker Daimon Neal as the most prolific in that regard., which is certainly saying something for a middle rower.
Speaking of Neal it will be a definite blow to Wairarapa-Bush's chances if his shoulder injury has him sidelined for tomorrow's game as while usual No.8 Sylvanus Iro is an able enough substitute on the openside flank he does not have Neal's rapid acceleration or nose for the ball on the ground. Nor his ability to annoy the hell out of the opposition inside backs.
Whatever the loose forward combination it will be vital that they are not alone in their pursuit of the loose ball, something which happened all too often in the Mid-Canterbury game.
The "tighties" have to be right up their bums, so to speak, or the high penalty counts which have haunted Wairarapa-Bush all season will very probably happen again.
In third division games referees seem to be obsessed with the idea that the team which first grapples for the loose ball is at fault when delivery of it is being slowed down when, to all intents and purposes, you would expect the opposition to be the perpetrators of the crime.
This is not to suggest that Wairarapa-Bush has always been penalised unfairly but they have certainly been on the receiving end of numerous dubious decisions at the breakdown area.
It can safely be said that if the Wairarapa-Bush forwards do their job then the attacking brilliance in the backline will put Buller's challenge to rest. They just won't be able to cope with the finesse and flair of players like Nathan Couch, Simanu Simanu and Bart Viguurs and that's not denigrating the Buller backline for the same could be said about all other third division teams as well.
And then there is the goal kicking of Patrick Rimene, who has already set a new points scoring record for the union and whose expertise in this area has been a match winner on several occasions. If all else fails perhaps he will be the hero came late tomorrow afternoon.