Injuries hit Wairarapa NPC rugby team at crucial time

Injury and illness is disrupting the preparation of the Wairarapa-Bush rugby team for their crucial NPC third division match with West Coast at Memorial Park, Masterton on Saturday.
Taking no part in training last night were fullback Richard Carroll and flanker Brian Saolele, Carroll because of a groin strain and Saolele because of soreness in his lower back.
And wing Esava Teko confined himself to jogging because of a sore knee.
Selector-coach Peter Russell said all three were in doubt for the West Coast game, a win in which will virtually guarantee Wairarapa-Bush a semi-finals berth
He is "pretty hopeful" though that both Carroll and Teko will recover in time to take the field but less optimistic about Saolele, whose speed to the loose ball,strong running in broken play situations and solid tackling has made him a key figure for Wairarapa-Bush this season.
If Saolele is out his place in the starting XV will almost certainly be taken by Sylvanus Iro, a youngster who has made good progress in 2004.
Providing cover for both Carroll and Teko is Fijian Jorji Tamani, just returned from a lengthy injury break himself.
He has played most of his rugby at wing but made a decent fist of fullback when Carroll left the field during his team's disappointing 30-5 loss to Poverty Bay in Gisborne last weekend.
But it isn't only injury concerns which have delayed the naming of the Wairarapa-Bush squad for Saturday's game until after another training session tomorrow night.
A number of players are battling 'flu and their fitness will need to be carefully assessed too.
Russell is confident his side will bounce back quickly from their Gisborne experience.
He said the loss there had come about not so much through Poverty Bay playing well but through Wairarapa-Bush letting themselves down.
"We had enough possession and territory to pull it off but we didn't use it," Russell said. "We weren't thinking on our feet?.we took far too many wrong options."
Russell is expecting a stern challenge from a West Coast team which beat Wairrapa-Bush at home last season and which upset King Country last Saturday to give themselves an outside chance of a semi-finals spot.
"We have to treat them with respect, no doubt about that," he said. "They will be in a positive frame of mind and we can't take anything for granted. It's going to be a tough game."
With West Coast having a bulky pack the Wairarapa-Bush tactics will probably revolve around moving the ball wide , thus utilising the pace and flair of their outside backs as well as testing the stamina of the opposition forwards.