Va'a quits

Wairarapa-Bush rugby officials have been rocked by the resignation of former Samoan international Earl Va'a ?s coach of their Heartland championship side for the 2008 season.
Va'a was appointed to the position only late last year but after having his management team confirmed and staging at least a couple of pre-season training sessions with prospective players he has quit to take up a presumably more lucrative coaching post in Japan.
WBRFU chairman Bryan Weatherstone said last night he was "?xtremely disappointed"that Va'a was being lost to Wairarapa-Bush but, at the same time, he felt nothing would be gained by the union standing in his way.
"Earl himself is very disappointed the way things have turned out but he feels the Japan offer is simply too good to turn down," he said. "He's a family man and this is obviously a big opportunity for him."
Weatherstone said he had been very impressed by the work already done by Va'a in getting his coaching message across to players who were keen to perform at representative level.
"He had already built a good repore with the players and they were all looking forward to working with him and Robbo (assistant coach Mike Robinson)," Weatherstone said
"We even had some of the players who pulled out last year coming back because Earl had got their enthusiasm going again"
Weatherstone said the union's board of control would decide early next week what course of action to take in seeking a replacement for Va'a.
"Right now I wouldn't like to say what will happen," he said when asked whether the post would be re-advertised or simply passed on to someone else.
If the latter move was taken then Eketahuna stalwart Graeham Cheetham would have to be
a big chance to continue a job he did in partnership with Lofty Stevenson last year.
His overlooking in favour of Va'a in what is believed to have been a two-man contest created considerable controversy in local rugby circles because under Cheetham and Stevenson Wairarapa-Bush had made the semis of the Heartland championship despite only having six of the previous season's title-winning squad available to them.
Cheetham said he was "very surprised"to hear of Va'a's resignation when contacted by the Times-Age last night but confirmed he still had the desire to coach the Wairarapa-Bush side
"? was pretty gutted to miss out but it's still a job I'd like to do,"he said. "I'd say I would put my name in the hat again if the chance was there".
Cheetham has already been appointed coach of the Rathkeale College first XV for the coming season and doesn't necessarily see the Wairarapa-Bush post causing him to relinquish that role.