Wairarapa likely to be surprise package

Brock Price, likely spearhead of Wairarapa attack in Hawke Cup campaign.

Sticking to the basics will serve Wairarapa well when they launch their 2015-16 Hawke Cup cricket campaign with a match against Manawatu at Rathkeale College on November 21 and 22.

Coach Neil Perry accepts his team won't be expected to rattle too many cages after finishing at the very bottom of the points table last season but he took enough positives from their performances at the Chapple Cup tourney in Hastings to suggest they could be the surprise package this time round.

"We mightn't be the flashiest team but that doesn't matter, if we play good, sensible cricket there is no reason why we shouldn't be competitive."

Perry was impressed by the attitude and enthusiasm of the players at Hastings where Wairarapa suffered a 13-run loss to Nelson, beat Wanganui by 95 runs and then lost the final of the second-tier Cave Cup section to Marlborough by just two wickets.

"Honestly I was pretty happy with the way things went. We were right in the hunt in all three games and that was pleasing. Obviously there is still scope for improvement but I couldn't fault the commitment, it was outstanding."

Perry says the recipe for success in the Hawke Cup will revolve around the top order batsmen being prepared to build an innings, to keep the number of risky shots played to a minimum.

"You want them to have the mindset that if they get to, say, 30 or 40 they go on and make a really big score."

Good news for Wairarapa is that Palmerston North High School opener Mason Hughes, who made his debut for them at the Chapple Cup, is keen to be involved in the Hawke Cup programme as well, and that both Manawatu and Central Districts have given their support. Hughes top scored with 90 against Wanganui and again with 60 against Marlborough and impressed Perry with his shot selection and fighting qualities.

"He's very well organised at the crease, he keeps it simple," Perry said.

Whether former Black Cap Jesse Ryder will continue his association with the Wairarapa squad remains to be seen. He only had the one innings of any note at the Chapple Cup, a 35 against Wanganui, and a side strain limited his bowling efforts to just five overs against Nelson, but his all-round skills are undoubted and his presence would be a huge plus. Ryder is contracted to Central Districts for one-day and Twenty20 matches and his future availability for Wairarapa will probably depend on timing factors.

On the bowling front, it seems almost certain Wairarapa will have to do without paceman Seth Rance for the Chapple Cup as he is part of the Central Stags line-up in all forms of the game. The absence of Rance is a huge blow because he is the only bowler in this region with genuine speed but coach Perry is confident that a bevy of medium pacers, led by Stefan Hook-Sporry and Brock Price, are still capable of doing a decent job.

"The big test for them is to keep putting the ball in the right places so they force the batsmen to defend rather than attack."