Southern domination looming

Could a southern domination of Wairarapa-Bush rugby’s premier club competition be on the cards?

Both sides are certainly looming large ahead of a kick off in the opening round of the Moose Kapene Cup this weekend.

Greytown has set the benchmark in recent seasons with back-to-back championships, while Martinborough has been hiding in their neighbour’s shadows developing a largely inexperienced team.

But according to “Marty” coach James Bruce, his young chargers have more than done their apprenticeship and are ready to match it with the big boys.

“Last year we were pretty much an Under-21 side and it was probably the lack of experience that hurt us more than anything,” Bruce says.

With pretty much everyone back on board from 2016, plus a couple of classy new recruits, Bruce reckons he has the makings of a good team.

New names on the team sheet that are set to make a big impression are Armyn Sanders and Hugh Graham. Sanders appeared on the Farriers Wairarapa-Bush extended pre-Heartland squad last year as a potential load player. Previously at Counties-Manukau, Sanders is a versatile back capable of playing anywhere from numbers 10 to 15.

For Hugh Graham it could easily be a case of substituting the “H” for an “E” with the big fella having plenty of impact playing at lock. Just to prove how committed Graham is to his rugby, he travels over an hour each way coming in from Te Awaiti to practice.

Greytown have also picked up a some quality new players, but lost a few as well. Former Marist midfielder Michael Te Whare is returning back to his original club, with Tim Iro and Blane Kete also coming home after stints overseas.

On the debit side of the ledger are Tana Isaac, Glen Walters, Marcus Ale and Clinton Garrity.

Greytown coach Eli Telford says he is not as “flush” with players as last year, but has the nucleus of another very strong team.

“I think the thing for us this year will be starting well. We didn’t really play that well for much of the regular season last year, and then came good at the end,” Telford says.

“This year we want to start as we mean to finish.”

The two southern neighbours square off in the opening round this weekend.