Last go for Robbo!

WAIRARAPA-BUSH will have two extra incentives to produce a top-notch performance when they meet Horowhenua-Kapiti in the grand final of the NPC third division rugby competition at Memorial Park, Masterton on Saturday
As if having the chance to be the last-ever winners of the third division competition is not. good enough reason to come up with something special they will also have in mind that it is skipper Mike Robinson's swansong game for the union and that prolific points-scoring first-five Patrick Rimene will be making his 50 th appearance in the Wairarapa-Bush jersey.
Robinson 35, admits it was the disappointment of the hefty defeat at the hands of Poverty Bay in last season's third division final at Gisborne which had him rethinking an earlier decision to make that particular game his last for Wairarapa-Bush.
He said coach Peter Russell and assistant coach Chris Luman had talked to him about "unfinished business" and with his family's support he had decided to give it one more crack.
"Saturday is the end, no question of that," he said. "The body is telling me it's time to stop, I reckon I'm 35 going on 45 the way things are now."
Robinson described the hurt of that Poverty Bay loss as "horrible" and said it was a feeling that he and the other 17 or so current squad members who were part of it didn't want repeated.
"It wasn't so much that we got beaten, it was the way it happened," he said. "Everything seemed fine going into the game but we hardly fired a shot and we're determined not to let that happen again."
Robinson first played for Wairarapa-Bush in 1997 and he has been a regular since except for 1998 when he played for Wellington and 2003 when his wife had a baby and fatherhood took precedence.
He isn't sure of how many games he has played for the union but puts it at "60 or 61, somewhere around there."
Robinson believes the 2005 Wairarapa-Bush squad "very definitely" has the skill level to go all the way this season but, at the same time, he is aware they have made a habit of taking the foot off the pedal when clearly in front on the scoreboard and is determined that won't happen on Saturday.
"Yes, it's fair to say we have been guilty of going to sleep at odd times in most of our games and you can't afford to do that in a final," he said. "We have to play as hard as we can for as long as we can and if we do that the right result should be achieved."
Robinson is very wary though of a Horowhenua-Kapiti side which has not lost a game since being walloped by Wairarapa-Bush 50-3 in their preliminary round fixture.
He points out they they have picked up a a couple of quality backs from Wellington ?centre Timanu Martin and first-five Richard Aloe- since then and that their confidence will be sky high after they thumped King Country 42-5 in their semi-final game.
"They (Horowhenua-Kapiti) have a bloody good side and no way are we expecting anything other than a really tight tussle," he said. "They won't be worried at all about what happened the last time they played us, that's for sure."
Robinson is anticipating Horowhenua-Kapiti having a "real go" at Wairarapa-Bush up front but he is optimistic that the Wairarapa-Bush pack, in which he himself plays lock, will meet the challenge head on.
"Us forwards have to really dig deep for this one, it's no use having the sort of talent we've got in the backs and not getting them the ball," he said. "We need to get the edge up front and we're capable of doing that."
For Patrick Rimene the opportunity to chalk up 50 games for his union is a big thrill but, like Mike Robinson, his thoughts leading into the grand final are more about making up for what happened to Wairarapa-Bush on the same day in 2004
"None of us want to go through that again," he said."It's really gutting when you lose like we did and hopefully we can redeem ourselves this time round."
Rimene made his debut for Wairarapa-Bush in 1999 but it was the following season when he became a regular in the starting line-up.
For the first two seasons he was usually at fullback but with the cupboard of quality first-fives in Wairarapa-Bush being bare he was moved into that position in 2003 , a situation with which he had mixed feelings.
"Honestly, I hated it for a while," he said. "It was entirely new to me and I struggled. It was tough going."
Encouraged by experienced team-mates like his Marist off-sider Nathan Couch, however, Rimene grew into the pivotal role and whilst he sees himself as still being in learning mode he now enjoys playing there.
"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I'm pretty comfortable there now," he said.
Rimene echoes Robinson's sentiments over Saturday's grand final, saying that Horowhenua-Kapiti will be an entirely different kettle of fish to what they were a few weeks back.
"Nothing that has happened before counts for anything come Saturday" he said. "It's now down to just the two of us and everything is back to square one.We know they will throw everything at us and we have to throw it back."
Rimene recalls having one of the newcomers to the Horowhenua-Kapiti side in Timanu Martin as a team-mate for Wairarapa-Bush a couple for seasons ago and rates him highly.
"He's got a lot of good qualities and players like him will certainly add something to their team," he said.
Rimene sees the camaraderie within the Wairarapa-Bush side as being a big plus leading into a game of such importance,
"It's easily the best environment I've played in.
"It's just like being part of a club side really," he said. "Everybody wants to do it for the mates and hopefully that will help us get through this one."
Meanwhile, there has been more good news for Wairarapa-Bush rugby with East East winger Nick Olson being chosen to take part in the national under-19 trials at Palmerston North in early November.