United look to atone for dismal Tawa surrender

Horse and Hound Wairarapa United will be looking for something much better than they delivered last weekend when they play Miramar Rangers in a Capital premier division soccer match at Miramar tomorrow.
The fallout from their disappointing 4-1 loss to Tawa has been haunting Wairarapa United all week and a good win over Miramar Rangers would be a welcome sign that it was no more than a hiccup as they aim for promotion to central league next season.
Miramar Rangers will be no easy beats though with Wairarapa United coach Phil Keinzley suggesting they will be every bit as big a challenge as Tawa and, considering they are playing on the home ground, possibly even bigger.
And they will also have taken considerable confidence from winning both their premier division games to date to join Tawa at the top of the competition table.
Keinzley says there are no secrets about the way Miramar Rangers will approach the game.
They are an experienced unit who understand the advantages of doing the basics well and he is expecting them to place the emphasis on wearing Wairarapa United down , not through individual brilliance but strong teamwork.
That being the case Wairarapa United will need to ensure their defence is much tighter than it was against Tawa when a lack of intensity saw the Tawa forwards too often left in a one-on-one situation.
If the workrate of James Oxtoby , Miriek Tuaroh and Sakeo Valevou had been a general rule the ground made by Tawa in their attacking raids would have far less than it was.
It will be imperative too that Wairarapa United's strike power of Seule Soromon and Pita Rabo are given greater support up front.
Miramar Rangers will no doubt have noted the success of Tawa "double teaming" them and if they adopt similar tactics then it will be vital that at least some of the scoring burden is taken off them by the likes of Andy Robertson and Aaron Spierling.
The actual composition of the Wairarapa United team had not been decided at the time these notes were penned but the likliehood was that Guiseppe Cagliari would come into the midfield where his assertiveness could be a real plus, and Waisake Sabutu will play in the defence.
Sabutu , who has played internationally for Fiji, has made a relatively quiet start to his stint with Wairarapa United and they will be hoping that he uses his height to more telling effect when competing for ball in the air on this occasion.
n The draw for this weekend is.-Tomorrow: Miramar Rangers v Wairarapa United, Island Bay United v Kapiti Coast, Waterside-Karori v Marist, Upper Hutt City v Lower Hutt City.Sunday: Western Suburbs v Tawa.
A clear picture has already emerged after the opening two rounds of play in division one of the Wairarapa championship. Three teams, Sports Arena Douglas Villa, Carterton Wanderers and Trevs Sports Masterton, have accumulated the maximum six points with the other three sides yet to register any points at all.Making the pace in division two are Carterton Redbacks and Rathkeale College although the latter's move to play in the junior premier league in Wellington will obviously see changes there.
Current standings are:-
Division one: Sports Arena Douglas Villa 6, Carterton Wanderers 6, Trevs Sports Masterton 6, Wairarapa College 0, Featherston 0, McAuleys Masterton 0.
Division two: Carterton Redbacks 6, Rathkeale College 6, Carterton Casuals 3,k Douglas Villa Magpies 3, Douglas Villa Offsiders 3, Masterton Presidents 1, Evergreens 1, Carterton Skulls 0.
Last weekend's results.-Division one: Sports Arena Douglas Villa 7, McAuleys Masterton 0; Carterton Wanderers 4, Wairarapa College 0; Trevs Sports Masterton 2, Featherston 0 Division two: Masterton Presidents 4, Evergreens 4; Douglas Villa Offsiders 3, Carterton Casuals 1; Rathkeale College 4, Douglas Villa Magpies 2; Carterton Redbacks 4, Carterton Skulls 1.