Opaki seek major upset

Cory Spooner, impressive form of late for the favoured Carterton combination. PHOTO/CHRIS KILFORD

THE SYMBOL of Wairarapa Tennis club supremacy, the Gawith Shield, will be up for grabs on Saturday when Opaki and Carterton face off in the regional one final being played at the Masterton Tennis Centre.

And while the pace-setting Carterton side will be red-hot favourites to add to their trophy tally, there is no denying that Opaki are worthy finalists, given the hard road they successfully navigated to reach this point.

With two clutch victories over the past fortnight, Opaki will be battle-hardened and they will be looking to empty the tank on court to cause one of the bigger boilovers of recent times.

The ultra-consistent Opaki team have won four of their last five encounters, including a 4-2 defeat of none other than Carterton, though not too much can be read into that result given the personnel involved in that fixture.

Carterton, meanwhile, have had little to do of late. In racing vernacular, they have had a "spell" leading up to the final, taking into account they had qualified for the final several weeks ago and have also had two byes in the past three weeks. While that is hardly ideal, they should certainly be relatively fresh and will be looking to unleash in the season-ender.

In Matt Spooner, Carterton have an immediate advantage. The Wairarapa closed singles champion has not dropped a set in singles or doubles all season and the chances of Opaki's Chris Davidson extending him appear slim.

Karen Herrick has also remained unbeaten in singles play for Carterton and, having dished out a couple of heavy losses to youngster Finola O'Boyle already this season, she will be confident of finishing the season with a clean slate.

The real interest in this fixture will centre on the remaining men's rubbers, matches that Opaki must win.

"Cometh the hour, cometh the man" is a term that could be applied to Opaki No2 Stuart Wyeth after his heroics of the past two weeks, and for Opaki's sake another extraordinary performance is required to keep them in the hunt.

His opponent tomorrow will be Cory Spooner, who has been equally impressive of late, and his all-court game will push Wyeth to his limits and this should be a cracking game.

Likewise, the No3 men's encounter between Duncan Oakley and Carterton's Andi Steinemann. Oakley has been on a hot streak in the latter stages of the season, including a golden run in the Wairarapa closed championships, and his game is tailor-made for the sluggish pace of the Masterton courts.

Steinemann won't be too fazed, however, as he defeated Oakley earlier in the season and has yet to taste singles defeat.

If Opaki can stay within reach leading into the doubles then they cannot be discounted.

The pressure-cooker atmosphere of playoff matches can bring the best, and worst, out of people and, judging by their performances of late, Opaki thrive on these make or break moments.

Whether the Spooners and company will let them get to that stage is doubtful and if the form book reads true, it should be Carterton hoisting the Gawith Shield in victory.

In the third-fourth playoff Gladstone will take on Masterton which should be a relatively even encounter.

At full strength, Masterton may prove to be a handful for Gladstone, though a fourth placing would be somewhat unjust for the country club, given they ended the regular season in second position.

Already having their name engraved on the regional two championship trophy is Masterton 1.

They book-ended their stellar season with a 5-1 defeat of second-placed Opaki 2 last weekend and are now assured of the title.

They should have little trouble putting away Gladstone/Carterton this weekend to cap off another great campaign.

In other matches Opaki 2 should defeat Martinborough while Masterton 2 may edge out Rathkeale, and Opaki 1 could just get the better of Greytown.