Bush need not fear

Statistics suggest Wairarapa-Bush have no reason to fear King Country in their vital Lochore Cup Heartland championship rugby match to be played at Memorial Park, Masterton on Saturday.
The disappointments of losing to West Coast and Horowhenua-Kapiti in their previous two matches will see Wairarapa-Bush deservedly start as the underdogs in a game they could have to win to stay in Lochore Cup contention.
A scenario made even more certain when you consider King Country are coming to Memorial Park on the back of massive wins over East Coast (34-9) and Buller (44-5).
Yes, the margin of those victories is impressive, but before pundits start writing Wairarapa-Bush off they should also remember that the home team have beaten both East Coast and Buller in pool games this season, East Coast by 33-14 and Buller by 23-16.
Worth recalling too is that whereas Wairarapa-Bush secured those two wins in pool play, King Country's only victory there came in their very first game of the season when they beat Horowhenua-Kapiti 17-12, a result made to look even better by Wairarapa-Bush's 31-17 defeat by Horowhenua-Kapiti last weekend. However, it should be said that the Horowhenua-Kapiti team which Wairarapa-Bush played was considerably more organised and disciplined than that which had earlier lost to King Country.
In their other pool games King Country suffered four successive losses, 8-13 to West Coast (Wairarapa-Bush also lost to them by five), 5-14 to Thames Valley, 22-52 to Wanganui and 24-28 to South Canterbury.
King Country coach Brett Coombe told the Wairarapa Times-Age yesterday his team would be taking nothing for granted against a Wairarapa-Bush team he expects to come out firing on all cylinders. "It'll be tough, very tough," he said. "We've had some pretty rugged battles in Masterton in the past and this one won't be any different."
Coombe is pleased with the improvement shown by his squad over the 2010 season but is quick to note that the big scores registered against East Coast and Buller came against sides who, on the day, were not "that flash".
"We're not getting too carried away by those margins, we did play well but, quite honestly, the opposition were not up too much. Obviously it builds the confidence to get a couple of good wins under the belt, but neither performance was anything like perfect, not by a long chalk."
While they are already guaranteed a home semifinal in the Lochore Cup competition, King Country have plenty to play for on Saturday as a win over Wairarapa-Bush would earn them a home final as well, providing of course, that they win their semi.
And with that in mind, Coombe said there was no chance of anything less than a full strength side taking the field at Memorial Park.
"Quite frankly we are not a good enough team to give that any thought at all," he said. "We'll be putting our best possible side on the park, no doubt about that."
Tactically, King Country have focused this season on playing an expansive style of rugby and Coombe said nothing will change in that regard either. He said the forward unit did not have the bulk of past King Country packs and it made sense to keep set-piece play to a minimum.
"We've got a bit of flair and pace in the backs and we've looked to use that. There was a problem with passes not sticking in the pool games but that hasn't been a hassle in the last couple, so hopefully it's out of the system now."