Rep squad may have 30 players

The first official Wairarapa-Bush rugby squad for the 2009 season will be named later this week, and it could include up to 30 players.
Coach Kelvin Tantrum revealed yesterday the selection net had been deliberately thrown "far and wide" to ensure all options were covered, and that the original squad would almost certainly include some players currently playing their club rugby outside the Wairarapa-Bush region.
And he also emphasised that players overlooked were not necessarily out of the running to participate in the three matches covered by this particular squad, the last of which is the Ranfurly Shield challenge match against Wellington in Masterton on Thursday, July 2.
"We have no set rules on how big this squad should be, right now we are looking at up to 30 but there's no reason why it can't be even bigger than that, "Tantrum said. "Form will always dictate, that's the key factor for us."
Just how many possible "loan players" will make the cut could largely depend on the eligibility of players currently playing for the Bush sub-union side in the Manawatu competition.
A handful of them performed so impressively for the Bush XV which was beaten 8-3 by a Wairarapa XV at Memorial Park on Monday they would be near certainties should they be available, none more so than flanker Joss Tua-Davidson, lock Brandon Young and wing Greg Harding.
Tua-Davidson skippered the Bush XV and looked every inch captaincy material as he consistently took the ball up on attack and tackled solidly around the fringes of the scrums and mauls.
Young was arguably the best lineout exponent on the paddock and also made a huge impact with his aggressiveness in other areas of the tight forward game.
Harding only had limited opportunities to show his paces on the wing but grabbed all of them with both hands, showing a good turn of speed and nifty footwork to boot.
It is possible that some of the Bush players wanted actually reside within the bounds of the Wairarapa-Bush union and therefore may not fall into the "loan player" category, a situation which Tantrum said was currently being worked through by WBRFU officials.
What impressed Tantrum most about Monday's encounter was the commitment and passion shown by the two sides in what were very trying conditions.
"There a lot of talk amongst the players afterwards about how physical it had been, and that's what we wanted," he said. "The intensity was certainly higher than what you would normally get in club games, and so was the skill level. It was very encouraging from that point of view."
Meanwhile , the Wairarapa-Bush Rugby Referees Association's annual interchange with Far North Coast (NSW) referees takes place locally on Saturday.
Gervase Bertuss arrives in Friday and will control the senior reserve match between Pioneer and Carterton at the Park Sportsground.
SATURDAY'S DRAW IS:-
Premier division: Masterton Red Star v Marist, Memorial Park 1 at 2.30pm (J. Archer, Marlborough; M. Andrell and M. Flight); Pioneer v Puketoi, Park Sportsground at 2.30pm (G. Reisima; G. Bertuss and M. Brown); Carterton v Gladstone, Carterton at 2.30pm (G. Hall; T. Kiel and T. Penny); Greytown v Martinborough, Greytown at 2.30pm (T. Roseingrave; J. Devine and G. Duffy); Eketahuna v East Coast, Eketahuna at 2.30pm (A. Stringer; A. Payne and K. Lochhead).
Senior reserves: Masterton Red Star v East Coast, Memorial Park at 1pm (M. Flight, Marlborough); Pioneer v Carterton, Park Sportsground at 1pm (G. Bertuss, Far North Coast); Eketahuna v Marist, Eketahuna at 2pm (J. Waterman); Featherston v Greytown, Featherston at 2.30pm (G. Moorcock); Tuhirangi v Gladstone, Pirinoa at 2.30pm (H. Porter); Martinborough a bye.
Colts: Eketahuna v Varsity Ag, Eketahuna at 1pm (A. Payne).
Women's premier: Eketahuna v Waikanae, Eketahuna at 12.30pm (K. Lochhead).
Secondary schools First XV premier: Rathkeale College v Feilding High School, Rathkeale at 12.30pm (M. Andrell, Marlborough). Open grade: Chanel first XV v Makoura first XV, Chanel at 11.15am (E. Wallace); Rathkeale second XV v Wairarapa College Yellow, Rathkeale No 2 at 11.15am (B. Whale); Kuranui first XV v Wairarapa College Blue, Kuranui at 11.15am (T. Kiel). Junior: Chanel v Wairarapa College Yellow, Chanel at 10am (T. Penny); Makoura v Rathkeale White, Makoura at 10am (J. Devine); Kuranui Purple v Wairarapa College Blue, Kuranui at 10am (G. Duffy); Rathkeale Red v Rathkeale Green (played midweek); Kuranui Blue a bye.