Wairarapa-Bush wingers Cameron Hayton and Nathan Hunt have been named in the New Zealand Heartland championship rugby team to undertake a two-match tour of Samoa next month.
And they would have been joined in the national side by prop Kurt Simmonds but for the Wairarapa-Bush captain breaking his right arm in the Meads Cup semifinal match with Wanganui at Cooks Garden last Saturday.
Simmonds has since had a steel plate inserted in the arm and will be out of action for several months.
Hayton and Hunt made their debuts for Wairarapa-Bush this season after showing outstanding form at club level, Hayton for Gladstone and Hunt for Martinborough.
A former New Zealand University rep, Hayton was troubled by a leg injury towards the closing stages of the Heartland campaign, but before that had emerged as one of the most dangerous attackers in the squad, mixing pace with a decent swerve and nifty footwork.