NZFC pairing will aid United

Wairarapa United's strike force is set to play a leading role in Young Heart Manawatu's 2009 New Zealand Football Championship campaign, which kicks off on Sunday when they play Wellington at Newtown Park.
Combining up front for the Manawatu side will be Seule Soromon and Campbell Banks, who paired so effectively for Wairarapa United over the latter stages of last season's central league campaign.
Soromon, a Vanuatu international, was an early signing by Manawatu coach Bob Sova who was impressed by his speed and flair, commodoties which helped him to a Wairarapa United goal scoring record two seasons back and made him the second highest individual scorer in the central league.
The signing of former All White Banks by Manawatu was confirmed only last week and means he is returning to a side for which he played in the 2005-06 season when they were runners-up to Auckland City for the national title and played in the Oceania playoffs.
Since then Banks had played two summers in the Victorian premier league in Melbourne for Green Gully Cavaliers and Sunshine George Cross and he made a huge impact with his attacking skills when he was a late addition to the Wairarapa United squad last season, scoring some important goals himself and setting up numerous others.
At 1.90m Banks will be the easily the tallest player in what is a relatively short Manawatu, a scenario which will make him an obvious target man for crosses and corner kicks.
Wairarapa United coach Phil Keinzley is delighted to see Soromon and Banks continuing their partnership in the NFC, saying it can only be good news for Wairarapa United leading into their 2010 central league programme.
"Every game they play together is going to make them a more lethal combination.......and they are lethal enough now," Keinzley said, adding that their very different styles was always going to make them difficult to be shut down by any defensive system.
"Campbell plays pretty much by the book and Seule is unpredictable and unorthodox.....you might be able to keep one under wraps but it's damn hard to keep them both quiet" he said. "One is the ideal foil for the other."
Keinzley will be an interested spectator at Sunday's game, and not only to watch Soromon and Banks and the third Wairarapa United player in the Manawatu line-up, Adam Cowan, in action.
Two other players who will be involved in the match have also indicated their keenness to join Wairarapa United next season but Keinzley isn't saying for what team they play because there have been no formal discussions with them, and he wants to assess their form and their playing styles before making any sort of commitment.