Former All Black Chris Masoe (21 tests) and Manu Samoa standout Paul Perez (25) played their first senior provincial games for Whanganui as youngsters in 1999 and 2005 respectively, while Mana Ashford left his hometown to later play for the NZ Sevens team.
Tough lock Jason Eaton (15 tests), historically noteworthy in 2005 alongside midfielder Isaia Toeava (36) for being among the last players chosen for All Black debuts before playing Super Rugby, made his provincial debut against Whanganui in 2002 for Manawatū.
Fans will enjoy seeing 2011 Rugby World Cup hero Stephen Donald (23 tests) and about a dozen players who have played tests not only for New Zealand but also for Samoa, Japan, Ireland and England.
The bulk of the Classics side were involved in the 79-14 win over Pasifika Legends last Friday at Eden Park.
“There’s some big boys there, so we’re telling our fellas they’ve got to be running our game plan, which is moving the ball,” said Whanganui coach Jason Hamlin.
“They wouldn’t like running into those big bodies, but they’ll learn their lessons, I’m sure.
“[The Classics are] doing rolling subs. We can if we want, but we’ll probably look and see how we go [for longer].
“They’re pretty decent. They won’t have the speed that they once had, but they still know how to play their game.”
Indeed, while the average age of the Classics side will be in the late 30s to early 40s, with former Hurricanes halfback Jamie Booth being the spring chicken at 30, their number of first-class fixtures dwarfs Whanganui’s Heartland caps.
Regular players such as hooker Alesana Tofa, lock Peter-Travis Hay-Horton and midfielder Timoci Seruwalu are still working through the injuries that saw them miss much of the Premier club season.
“Young Te Atawhai Mason will get his opportunity come Saturday, as Dane Whale’s out from the [club] final, and still two weeks away,” said Hamlin.
“That’s a good opportunity for some of the boys to play not only this week but next week as well against Saracens.
“We can see where they’re standing in the scheme of things. What we’ve been saying to them, after a couple of weeks of trainings, is they’re making our [Heartland selection] job harder – it’s a good thing.
“This game gives us three or four extra guys that we wouldn’t be able to look at in any other [match] scenario, but this one we get to name a 26-man squad.
“Adam Boult hasn’t played for Whanganui in a Heartland jersey. He’ll get his opportunity.”
The game, which kicks off at 2.35pm, will be played in four quarters of 20 minutes.
