New faces dominate rep team

The new faces clearly outnumber the old hands in the Wairarapa senior men's cricket team to play Nelson in the first of the Hawke Cup elimination matches at Nelson this coming weekend.
The only established rep players in the 12 players named to make the trip south are player-coach Robin James, top order batsmen Sam Curtis and Cameron Stone and opening bowler Seth Rance.
It is a situation forced upon selectors James, Dick Kendall and Brendon Bracewell, not only because so many of last year's squad have moved out of the district but also though the non-availability of Rathkeale College players who are preparing for the finals of the Gillette Cup national secondary schoolboys competition.
Three of the Rathkeale team, Doug Bracewell, Andy Dodd and Simon Clinton-Baker, were regular members of the Wairarapa squad last season and would have been front runners for the Nelson game., and at least two others, Brock Price and Dean van Deventer, had to be serious contenders as well..
Interestingly enough the team which upset Rathkeale in the latest round of Bidwell Cup club games, Academy, has the biggest representation of any club in this weekend's line up. They provide batsmen David Irvine and Jamie Perkins and bowlers Matt Young and Richard Lewis.
Irvine is a prospect to fill what has become a headache for Wairarapa over recent times, the role of opening batsman. Curtis seems guaranteed to be one opener with either Irvine or Greytown's Paul Lyttle the most likely to partner him.
Also batting up the order will be the consistent Stone (Wairarapa College) Perkins and Red Star's Daniel Stonely with all-rounder James probably coming in at around six or seven.
Boosting Wairarapa's chances of registering competitive scores on what seems certain to be a better-friendly wicket is the fact that all of their front line bowlers actually fit the label of all-rounder?..James, Rance, Young, Lewis and a couple more newcomers, Red Star medium pacer Jarrod Watt and Wairarapa College spinner Jeremy Anderson.
The attack itself will be very much based around pacemen James and Rance, both of whom have been in good form this season and who have the advantage of being a left arm and right arm combination. Lewis, Watt and Stone will be keen to bowl too while the shine is still on the ball with Anderson and Young providing the spin.
Coach James is optimistic that while a lack of two day cricket could count against them Wairarapa will give a strong account of themselves at Nelson.
He said the probability was that a lot of runs would be scored and that had played a big part in the selection process.
"We decided to take an extra batsman because of the way the wickets play down there???.we're working on the basis that a big first innings total will be crucial," he said.
Strengthening the batting does , of course, mean the workload of the bowlers will increase to an extent but James is confident they will respond positively to that challenge.
"As long as we are consistent with our line and length and stay patient we should be OK," he said.
"Patience is the key?.. ?? we are going to need plenty of that."