Wairarapa aim for Cup win

Wairarapa are primed to make a strong challenge for the Christie Cup, symbol of tennis supremacy in the Central Districts region.
It has been 23 years since Wairarapa held the coveted trophy and selector Steve Hurley- a member of that successful 1983 side- has high hopes they can do the business when they meet current holders Taranaki at Hawera on March 4.
That despite that their top-ranked male player. national age group representative Marcus Daniell, won't be returning from Auckland for the game and that they will also be without one of their better-performed woman players in Charlotte Gibson, who is recovering from a broken leg.
Hurley concedes that Daniell and Gibson leave big holes to fill but he takes comfort from the fact that five other players who play their club tennis in Wellington will be part of the Wairarapa squad??.Jono Hurley. Matt Spooner, Baden Stevenson, Emma Stevenson and Katie Wyeth.
That quintet will lead the Wairarapa side when they meet Wanganui at Martinborough this coming weekend in a match which should prove an ideal dress rehearsal for the Christie Cup encounter.
For it was only a few weeks ago that Wanganui themselves challenged Taranaki for the Cup and came as close as you can get to grabbing a victory, drawing 12-12.
Selector Hurley is hopeful that Wanganui will field a full strength side for the Martinborough exercise so that his team can gain a proper gauge on what they will need to do to upset Taranaki.
"Obviously it would be a big boost to confidence if we could beat the top Wanganui line-up; even running them close would be a plus in that respect," Hurley said. "The higher the self belief when we play Taranaki the better,"
It is the overall strength of their men's section which promises to be Wairarapa's main weapon, both against Wanganui and Taranaki.
The top two players there, Jono Hurley and Matt Spooner, are experienced campaigners on the representative scene, as are Geoff McKay and Mike Jackson while Baden Stevenson is a promising up-and comer.
Hurley said it would be vital that the men not only shone in singles play but took control in the doubles as well, especially the combined doubles which comes at the end of representative games.
"You'd like to think we will be going into the combines with a good chance of victory so doing well there will be crucial," he said. "And it will be up to the men to dominate, they have to take control."
The Wairarapa women don't have the experience in higher level player of their male counterparts, but Hurley is still confident that they too have the ability to make a name for themselves.
He expects Emma Stevenson and Katie Wyeth to show the benefits of playing their club tennis in a Wellington competition somewhat more testing than that in Wairarapa and also anticipates the likes of Ashleigh Gane, Natasha Robinson and Bridget Needham producing pleasing results as well.
"It's all about each and every player performing to their potential; do that and the Cup could be ours," he said.