FAN IN THE STAND: Never a dull moment when supporting Steamers

It is an exciting time to be a Steamers fan - and the season hasn't even begun.
Greg Smith now appears to be ex-head coach according to reports and Fans who sit in Stands can only guess at what is happening behind the scenes.
I would have been a happier Fan if I had avoided Tauranga Domain last Friday afternoon.
Hundreds of others made the same mistake as me and the Steamers gave a limp performance to a full grandstand.
The other Bay gave us a lesson in the basics of rugby while we huffed and puffed and achieved absolutely nothing at all.
Northland Taniwha will be relishing the prospect of a visit to Rotorua tonight. Hopefully they're planning on taking us lightly based on the turmoil at Bay HQ.
Northland is a solid unit and with flair players like Rene Ranger lurking at the back, our dodgy backline defence will be tested.
You may wonder if this Fan is being unduly pessimistic about our prospects. I hope I am proven wrong. We need Mike Delany to start with his 2008 form and to form a partnership with new halfback Junior Poluleuligaga, who boasts a list of previous teams almost as long as his name and is built like a No 8.
A functional lineout would be handy, hopefully coupled with a wee fire in the bellies of the forward pack.
Next season the domestic competition is being revamped again. After multiple reviews and experiments, we have been presented with the same format for the Premier division that was originally in place in 2005.
The four provinces consigned to a lower division in 2010 will struggle to keep players and crowd numbers. Given where we currently stand in the national criteria rankings we desperately need a good season. Or at the very least an average season.
Toppling Northland tonight and Counties the week after would give me confidence in our ability to be a Premier team next year.
The Fan took a look back to his final column of 2008 and the Chiefs squad selection. Wallowing in grumpiness, I identified Mark Burman as a mysterious, unseen player selected at lock.
Come the Steamers squad announcement and, hey presto, there he is again, loaned out to us by Waikato despite his supposed sparkling Super 14 credentials. They are certainly a generous bunch those Mooloos, as we've also hoovered up a few of their spare props. Maybe I missed our name change to the Waikato development squad.
On Friday afternoon I looked out for Burman but he wasn't in the Bay side.
Nor was halfback Ruki Tipuna, but at least his location was known. The man who waltzed around All Black Jimmy Cowan last season was on the bench for Wellington in their final pre-season game. What's going on?
%Never a dull moment when supporting SteamersIT IS an exciting time to be a Steamers fan - and the season hasn't even begun.
Greg Smith now appears to be ex-head coach according to reports and Fans who sit in Stands can only guess at what is happening behind the scenes.
I would have been a happier Fan if I had avoided Tauranga Domain last Friday afternoon.
Hundreds of others made the same mistake as me and the Steamers gave a limp performance to a full grandstand.
The other Bay gave us a lesson in the basics of rugby while we huffed and puffed and achieved absolutely nothing at all.
Northland Taniwha will be relishing the prospect of a visit to Rotorua tonight. Hopefully they're planning on taking us lightly based on the turmoil at Bay HQ.
Northland is a solid unit and with flair players like Rene Ranger lurking at the back, our dodgy backline defence will be tested.
You may wonder if this Fan is being unduly pessimistic about our prospects. I hope I am proven wrong. We need Mike Delany to start with his 2008 form and to form a partnership with new halfback Junior Poluleuligaga, who boasts a list of previous teams almost as long as his name and is built like a No 8.
A functional lineout would be handy, hopefully coupled with a wee fire in the bellies of the forward pack.
Next season the domestic competition is being revamped again. After multiple reviews and experiments, we have been presented with the same format for the Premier division that was originally in place in 2005.
The four provinces consigned to a lower division in 2010 will struggle to keep players and crowd numbers. Given where we currently stand in the national criteria rankings we desperately need a good season. Or at the very least an average season.
Toppling Northland tonight and Counties the week after would give me confidence in our ability to be a Premier team next year.
The Fan took a look back to his final column of 2008 and the Chiefs squad selection. Wallowing in grumpiness, I identified Mark Burman as a mysterious, unseen player selected at lock.
Come the Steamers squad announcement and, hey presto, there he is again, loaned out to us by Waikato despite his supposed sparkling Super 14 credentials. They are certainly a generous bunch those Mooloos, as we've also hoovered up a few of their spare props. Maybe I missed our name change to the Waikato development squad.
On Friday afternoon I looked out for Burman but he wasn't in the Bay side.
Nor was halfback Ruki Tipuna, but at least his location was known. The man who waltzed around All Black Jimmy Cowan last season was on the bench for Wellington in their final pre-season game. What's going on?