Baywide rugby: Bumper crowd expected for Mount Maunganui v Te Puna

Mount Maunganui Sports halfback Jonty Wood will be a key player in the clash with Te Puna on Saturday. PHOTO/FILE

A bumper crowd is expected at Blake Park tomorrowfor the highly anticipated clash between Mount Maunganui Sports and Te Puna.

It may be early days in the opening round of the Baywide Premier competition but this cross-town derby will give both coaches a much clearer indication of their relative strengths and weaknesses.

The match has all the hallmarks of a competitive, high-scoring game with two of the best drilled forward packs and attacking backlines in the Bay of Plenty on show. With a mid-summery 25C forecast for the Mount, conditions will be ideal.

Both coaches are excited about the match between competition leaders Mount Maunganui and Te Puna who are third-equal with Rotoiti.

Te Puna mentor Aidan Kuka says it will be a good challenge to gauge where they are at up against the defending Baywide champions.

"We had a good challenge against Rotoiti two weeks ago but playing the Mount, as champions they are the benchmark moving forward. It should be a good game."

Te Puna had a particularly successful pre-season and have attracted some quality young players into the squad.

"We also did a lot of work with camps and team building activities. All the new boys definitely feel part of it. Our club makes a really big deal about any new guys coming into our club. We whakatau (welcome) them into our club and make them feel a part of it straight away," Kuka says.

There is a growing feeling among Baywide rugby followers that Te Puna are poised for a real crack at the Baywide title in 2018. But Kuka is keeping expectations under control at this stage of the season.

"This time last year there was the same sort of hype going around but we hit a few judder bars along the road. We have spoken about that this year and how we are going to handle that. We would like to think we have a squad that can push through to a playoff spot at the end of the season."

Mount Maunganui have a new head coach in Reuben Parkinson, who is no stranger to the players or the club after two years as assistant coach.

He has some quality young backs leading the way including Coby Milne and Christian Kelly.

"It is really exciting to get some new younger players as in previous years we have struggled to get any of the younger players on board for unknown reasons," Parkinson says.

"Te Puna is a game to show where we are at but we really are focused in this first round on building our own game and putting it together and not really focusing on the opposition at this stage."

Top-eight hopefuls Arataki face a stern challenge tomorrow when they travel to face Whakarewarewa.

"We know that they are good at the counter-attack, especially with Kelly Haimona running the show in the backline and they have a really good kicking game," Arataki coach Billy Russell says.

"So we want to nullify that and put quite a bit of pressure on making sure our defensive structures are in place. We are still in the early stages, so we want to keep building team cohesion and building structured processes so [our players] can implement these in the game."

Baywide Premier Club Rugby Draw, Saturday
Premier
Kick-off: 2.45pm, Development Kick-off: 1pm
Greerton Marist v Paroa at Greerton Park; Tauranga Sports v Rotoiti at Tauranga Domain No 2 ground; Ngongotaha v Te Puke Sports at Ngongotaha Domain; Whakarewarewa v Arataki at Puarenga Park; Mount Maunganui Sports v Te Puna at Blake Park; Whakatane Marist v Rangataua at Rugby Park

Baywide Division One
Kick-off: 2.45pm
Papamoa v Te Teko at Gordon Spratt Reserve; Poroporo v Marist St Michael's at Poroporo; Opotiki v Ruatoki at Princess St Reserve; Rangiuru v Kahukura at Centennial Park; Waikite v Waimana at Bellvue Rd; Murupara v Judea at Ngati Manawa Rd