McLean sat out virtually all last season as he recovered from a broken leg. His assertive, no-nonsense style of play had made him a regular first choice for a locking berth over the previous couple of seasons and Wairarapa-Bush head coach Mark Rutene makes no secret of his delight at having a player of his calibre back on deck, especially in light of McFadzean's absence.
"You always know what you will get from him (McLean) ... he gives it everything no matter what the level he is playing."
Rutene is delighted too that Kurt Simmonds, the Greytown prop who captained Wairarapa-Bush in 2012 but, like McLean, missed basically all last season through injury - in his case a broken arm - is also returning to the fold this season.
He will add considerable strength to the front row stocks where a couple of Wellington-based "imports" Finnbarr Kerr-Newell and Jon Fuimaono made such a big impression last year.
Indications are they will both be available for selection again and the same goes for Johan Van Vliet, the Eketahuna flanker who captained Wairarapa-Bush through most of last season. He is in the Netherlands where his club side will be aiming to win their first title for 12 years when they contest the final this coming weekend but Rutene expects him to return home any time soon.
Also overseas is Paddy Gough, who will again be assisting Rutene in the Heartland coaching role. He is involved with a club in Chicago but will end his association with them at the end of May.
