Semis should go down to the wire

The word from those most in the know is that both semi-final matches in the Wairarapa-Bush premier division rugby competition on Saturday will go right down to the wire.
East Coast will host Greytown at Whareama and Masterton Red Star likewise Martinborough at Memorial Park and none of the
coaches involved are prepared to predict a likely result.
And that's not because they are in a "fence sitting" mode but because they genuinely believe the outcome could go either way.
As defending champions and top seeds
East Coast may seem to deserve favouritism
over Greytown, who only managed to sneak
into the semis by beating Pioneer in the very
last of the preliminary round games last weekend.
But those stats don't take account of the fact that their two previous clashes this season have produced a win apiece, East Coast scoring comprehensively at 38-13 in the first and Greytown turning the tables just as comprehensively 20-3 in the second.
East Coast coach John Pereira says the lead-in to the semis for his team this year has been much different than it was 12 months ago when gradual improvement saw them "sneak up" on their opposition.
"We're the top dogs now so there won't be any ambush this time," he quipped.
"Everybody is out to get us."
Pereira says his side haven't been as consistent as he would like in recent times with injury hassles regularly disrupting their preparations but he expects everybody to be on deck for this weekend.
And he reckons they will be needed to stave off a determined Greytown side who he rates as this season's "big improvers".
Former All Black Mark Donaldson and Guy Williams, a past Wairarapa-Bush representative, have been brought in to assist in the coaching process and Pereira is optimistic East Coast will produce the type of free-flowing rugby which has become their trademark.
"We like to keep everybody involved, to win games by scoring tries," he said.
"We won't be doing anything different this weekend."
Interestingly enough Greytown coach Stacey Grant sees his side playing a similar style of rugby to the Coasters with regular movement of the ball a primary objective.
"We have a lot of players who like to have a crack and I don't see any point in not allowing them to express that part of their game," he said.
"We got four tries against them (East Coast) last time and it would be nice to think we could do that again."
Greytown too has had their share of injury problems this season but, like East Coast, the good news is they are expected to be at full strength for Saturday's semi.
Grant said the surprisingly comfortable win over Pioneer had his players in a confident frame of mind but they were well aware of East Coast's experience and ability to rise to the big occasion.
"Honestly, it could go either way, I wouldn't like to pick it." he said.
The sudden death of former Greytown player Robert Guildford while watching
his son play in the Junior World Cup final
in Japan a few weeks back is seen by Grant as an extra motivation for his side to go all the way in this year's premier division competition.
"We still have photos of Robert on the walls in our changing rooms and we talk about him a lot," Grant said.
"He's in our minds for sure."
Masterton Red Star's qualifying for the semis is a good tale in itself as last season a shortage of players meant they did not even participate in the premier division competition.
Coach Corie Karaitiana admits their first aim in 2009 was simply to be competitive in the top grade but is quick to add that now they have made the top four the only result they want is the title.
But he is very wary of the challenge confronting them this weekend from a Martinborough side who they have already beaten twice this season, 23-8 and 13-6.
"Past results count for nothing and we know how well Martinborough can play," he said.
"They are especially strong up front and we know they will give us heaps there. How we cope with that will probably decide how we finish up."
Karaitiana is buoyed by the fact he will have a full squad to pick from this weekend, to the point where with only 22 players able to be named three will have to be stood down.
Martinborough coach Trevor Hawkins
was delighted with his team's impressive
win over East Coast last weekend - their second in as many games over the defending champions this season - but he isn't reading too much into that result when assessing Saturday's semi-final.
"They (Stars) have been our bogey team and that's something we've got to put behind us," he said. "We can win but it's going to take a lot of hard work, we certainly know that."
Martinborough is yet another premier division side which has been beset by injuries through most of the season but they too will be at full strength for the semi, and Hawkins is looking forward to them playing their usual hustle-bustle style of rugby.
"We're not going to change anything, the game plan will stay the same," he said.
"We need to start strongly and keep it going all the way through, that's the key for us."