Wairarapa-Bush rugby coach Kelvin Tantrum is delaying the naming of the Heartland championship squad for the 2009 season. Tantrum had initially hoped to make the announcement before the non-championship fixture against Otago Country at Memorial Park on August 8 but now says it won't happen until before another of the non-championshipgames against Poverty Bay in Gisborne on August 15. Tantrum said there was nothing sinister in the delay with the selectors simply needing more time to finalise their choices in "two or three" positions. "We've still a got a few spots with question marks over them and we want to make sure we have the right mix," Tantrum said. "Allowing ourselves a little more time will help in that respect." Tantrum was able to confirm yesterday, however, that two of the three "loan player" places in the Heartland squad would be filled by Wellington-based players, Junior Togia and Nick Risdon. Togia, who can basically play anywhere in the backline between midfield and fullback, was arguably the best back in the Wairarapa-Bush side last season while halfback Risdon, a former Wellington B and Buller representative, has already appeared twice this year. Risdon's cause has been helped by the fact that likely first string halfback, East Coast's Zeb Aporo, is not available for the first three Heartland championship matches.
