Te Waiariki Maori kickoff Baywide Pro 4 series against Western BOP

LEADER: Rotoiti lock Baden Wardlaw brings valuable premier rugby experience to the Te Waiariki Maori representative side. PHOTO/FILE

Te Waiariki Maori coach Murray Sturt wants his side to play a free-flowing, expansive style of rugby in the Baywide Pro 4 series.

They start the new series, which was created to get more players and coaches involved in representative rugby, against Western Bay of Plenty in Matata today The series comprises three weeks of round robin fixtures, with finals on September 2 at Eastern Districts Rugby Football Club in Paengaroa.

Sturt said his squad had a good mix of experience and "raw talent".

"The experienced guys like Whakataki Cunningham and Baden Wardlaw [who were Baywide premier finalists with Rotoiti] will help lift the less experienced players.

"They're leaders and they lead by example.

"We're not really worried about the win, draw or loss - for us it's about preparing for the Te Hiku [a northern region Maori rugby tournament].

"This series is more about getting a feel for the players. They all play for different clubs and come from all walks of life, so for us it's more a chance to get combinations for that tournament," Sturt said.

He was eager for the Te Waiariki Maori players to "just express themselves" in their opener against Western BOP.

"Putting their best foot forward for the coming weeks. There are guys who have never played at the premier level and it's going to be fast for them, but we're hoping they'll have a bit of fun, play Maori rugby and throw the ball around.

"We might not have the most mobile team, but when it comes to Maori rugby they'll mongrel up and play some good rugby. I want them to play a free-flowing style. They've played with lots of structure at their clubs but we're giving them a bit more freedom to move the ball around and play what's in front of them."