Maximum points targeted

Securing the maximum five points will be given a high priority rating by Wairarapa-Bush in their NPC third division rugby match at Greymouth tomorrow.
Intent on earning not only a home semi-final but a home final as well, this is a royal chance for Wairarapa-Bush to clinch at least the first of those objectives and maybe take a giant step toward the second as well.
Currently Wairarapa-Bush lie second on the competition table, one behind surprise leaders Buller and three ahead of third placed Horowhenua-Kapiti. A further three points back in fourth place is King Country.
What makes a maximum take so important for Wairarapa-Bush tomorrow is that Buller and Horowhenua-Kapiti meet on the same day.
Which means that if Wairarapa-Bush grab the five points then Buller must do likewise if they are to maintain their slender advantage.
And, of course, should they lose and Wairarapa-Bush win the latter would find themselves clearly at the top of the table with just the one round of preliminary games to go.
With Wairarapa-Bush so tantalisingly close to the competition lead and West Coast struggling along at the rear with just the one bonus point to show for their efforts and, what's more, coming off the back of a 64-5 thumping by King Country, tomorrow's game should be one-way traffic, shouldn't it?
The answer to that is yes but the confidence needs to be tempered to some degree by the fact that Wairarapa-Bush have made a habit in recent times of struggling to produce their best form against the lower ranked sides, and just two seasons ago were actually beaten by West Coast in Greymouth. And the Coasters weren't a lot stronger then than what they are now.
Wairarapa-Bush coach Peter Russell freely concedes to being frustrated by the inability of his side to put less talented teams away in comprehensive fashion through most of their 2005 NPC programme.
Too often the tendency has been to take the foot off the pedal once a comfortable lead has been obtained and Russell is concerned that if that trend continues dreams of a third division title will be just that, dreams.
The message from the coach to his team tomorrow then will be that total commitment is wanted throughout the full 80 minutes, and that if they do open up an early break on their opposition they continue to plunder until the game's end.
Russell is taking a "horses for courses" approach to the selection of his starting XV for tomorrow's game, and in a place like Greymouth where the weather can turn really sour at this time of the year-a bit like Wairarapa earlier this week- it makes good sense.
The make-up of the pack could be somewhat different from the norm if ground conditions are heavy with Russell keen to add greater bulk to the starting line-up on the basis that the focus on set piece plays would be all the greater.
In that case it could be that despite the excellent form hooker Rob Foreman and loosie Daimon Neal have shown through most of the rep season they could find themselves on the reserve bench with Ritchie McDonald and Steve Olds as their respective replacements.
The backline would, however, stay pretty much as it has been although another of the in-form players, fullback Bart Viguurs, is on the injured list and is to be replaced by Glen Bunny, who looked very comfortable in the role when he came on for Viguurs in the Thames Valley match last weekend.
It is good news for Wairarapa-Bush that apart from Viguurs the other three players who were considered doubtful starters for tomorrow through injury concerns, prop Joe Harwood, lock Tomasi Kedarabuka and centre Simanu Simanu, are all available for selection for the Greymouth match.
Kedarabuka and Simanu are, of course, integral parts of the starting XV and Harwood pushed hard for that distinction in the Thames Valley game, where his rampaging bursts were a feature of the first half effort. In fact, there was a period in that game where he appeared to be about the only Wairarapa-Bush player capable of breaching the advantage line.
SENIOR B'S
The Wairarapa-Bush senior B's will be thirsting for revenge when they play their Wanganui counterparts in Wanganui tomorrow.
The last time the two teams met Wanganui got home by a narrow margin but Wairarapa-Bush had at least as much of the match from a territorial viewpoint .Only a lack of finish to their attacking movements cost them victory.
Since that game utility players Steve Olds and Glen Bunny have been promoted to the senior A squad but coach Steve Thompson remains confident their overall performance will not be greatly affected.
He was impressed by the commitment and concentration shown in the big win over Horowhenua-Kapiti B last weekend and says a repeat of that effort would be enough to make them a big winning chance against Wanganui.
"We have been going really well in the set pieces and that's where we need to dominate tomorrow," he said."It's just a matter of ensuring what ball we do get we use well??..that we keep turnovers to an absolute minimum."
The Wairarapa-Bush B squad for tomorrow is: Lee Paku, Bruce McKenzie, Morgan Davies, Norm Henricksen, Stu Berry, Stacey Grant, Tom Sargent, Nathan Rolls, Aaron Morrisey, Darren Walker, Brendan Walker, Tim Fleming, Sam Walsh, Charlie Bargh, Te Maika Mason, Duncan Rutherford, Kingi Kaiwai, Daniel Elms, Matt Easton, Lance Stevenson, Darren Yates, Dave Murdoch.
BIGGIE FOR COLTS
The Wairarapa-Bush colts rugby side pulled off an impressive 32-3 win over Poverty Bay to win the B section of the annual Hurricanes colts competition last weekend and tomorrow they shoot for promotion to the A section when they take on Hawke's Bay at Taradale.
It will be a huge effort from Wairarapa-Bush if they win as evidenced by the fact that all four teams currently in the A section, Wellington, Taranaki, Manawatu and Hawke's Bay, will all have teams in the revamped national NPC first division competition next year.
Wairarapa-Bush coach Mark Rutene understands the extent of the challenge facing his team tomorrow but with confidence running high after a series of good wins over lesser-rated opposition he expects them to give a strong account of themselves.
"We're not going there to come second?..we really believe we have a decent shot at it," he said.
Rutene anticipates Hawke's Bay playing a controlled style of rugby with the emphasis on forward domination and he is hopeful Wairarapa-Bush will be able to counter that with heir mobility and flair.
"We have the pace in the backs to make it awkward for them and we need to use it," he said. "We're going to have a take few risks and we will be prepared to do that."