Tantrum focused on next challenge

Frustrated as he is by the poor results achieved by Hansells Wairarapa-Bush in Heartland rugby championship play this season , coach Kelvin Tantrum is already looking forward to the challenge of enhancing their performance levels in 2009.
Tantrum was given a two-year contract by the WBRFU and says he will be starting planning for next season well before the New Year kicks in.
A situation much different to this season when he was appointed to the role of head coach in late April after former Samoan international Earl Va'a resigned to take up a similar-but much better paid-job
in Japan.
"It'll be nice to have that extra time to ensure the pre-season organisation is up to scratch," Tantrum said.
"We need everything to be ticking over well before the club rugby starts, and that's where the initial emphasis will be."
Tantrum had former Wairarapa-Bush skipper Mike Robinson as his assistant coach this season but that won't be the case next year with Robinson no longer being available for the position because of work and family commitments.
He will be replaced by another former Wairarapa-Bush rep in Neil Foote, who is also likely to continue in the role of trainer.
Tantrum said Robinson would be a "huge loss" but expressed confidence in himself and Foote being able to handle the coaching responsibilities on their own. "We're pretty much on the same wave length so I can't see any problems," he said.
That Wairarapa-Bush had the potential to do better than they did this season is readily conceded by Tantrum and he accepts that as head coach he has to wear much of the blame for their disappointing formline.
"I'm not ducking for cover, not at all," he said. "No doubt there were things I could have done better, and it's up to me to make sure I don't go down the same track next time round."
Tantrum said he couldn't fault the enthusiasm or fitness of his players leading into their Heartland games, or indeed their determination to produce good results.
But all too often they had let themselves down through failing to adhere to basics like retaining possession, making first tackles count, maintaining their structure on attack and defence and following the game plan.
"I suppose you could say we were a bit cavalier in the way we played the game & we were forever talking about the need to do the simple things well but we'd get out on the paddock and the focus wasn't as good as it needed to be," he said.
"It cost us a few games, no question of that."
Tantrum was pleased, however, that Wairarapa-Bush were able to "blood" a number of players in Heartland play and he expects them to show the benefits of that experience next season.
"Most of the new guys took a step in the right direction and hopefully they will build on that," he said. "They now know what Heartland rugby is all about, that it's a lot different from what they get at club level."