Wai Col pair make huge impact

No one could argue with the commitment of Wairarapa College pupils Shakira Baker and Jessie Bennett in their sporting pursuits.
Their passion is rugby and they are fronting up for the Eketahuna women's team in the Wellington premier division on Saturdays and the Barbarians side which contests the Manawatu secondary schoolgirls competition on Sundays.
And the two 17-year-olds are consistently making a huge impact, Bennett with the solidness of her play in the five-eighths (although she was on the flank for Eketahuna last weekend) and Baker with her powerful running in the midfield.
Baker was selected in the Hurricanes secondary schoolgirls side last season after the interprovincial tournament in Levin.
She was the only player competing at second division level at that tourney to make the Hurricanes side.
A talented allround sportswoman, Baker is the Wairarapa College under-19 athletics champion, a title which came her way after she won the discus, shot put and long jump, finished second in the 100m and third in the high jump.
In swimming, too, she is the Wairarapa College champion in her age group, starring in all four strokes there.
Bennett has been playing rugby since she was 8 and was the only girl in the Wairarapa-Bush under-11, under-12 and under-13 teams of her day.
She has been an integral part along with Baker of the Wairarapa-Bush secondary schoolgirls side for the last four years.
Bennett is also a member of the Wairarapa College first XI soccer team and in the summer is a shining light at cricket, having already played at senior club level in Wellington and representing them at age group play.
Baker and Bennett will have a busy time of it again on the rugby field this weekend, playing for Eketahuna against Marist St Pats in a Wellington premier division match at Newtown tomorrow and for the Barbarians in the Manawatu secondary schoolboys 10-a-side tournament at Colombo Road in Masterton on Sunday.
Marist St Pats have long been regarded as one of the stronger rugby clubs in Wellington but their women's team have been struggling this season and presently sit on 11 competition points, 12 less than Eketahuna who are fourth-equal on 23pts.
Ahead of them are Norths and Johnsonville on 35pts and Ories on 26pts.
Eketahuna will field a new-look front row tomorrow with regular props Christine Wolland and Anna Mahe both unavailable but coach Cory Miller is confident there is enough depth in the reserves to adequately cover for their absence.
Miller says the Eketahuna game plan will revolve around attaining enough quality ball from the forward exchanges to give their pacy backs the chance to cut loose. "We don't want to spend too much time in the set pieces, that's not our style," he said.
Three Wairarapa teams, two from the Barbarians and one from Kuranui, will compete in the 10-a-side tourney on Sunday which will involve eight teams in all.
First round games will get under way at 1pm.