Established Canty XV should win

Press, 23 July 1986, Page 68

Established Canty XV should win

By

KEVIN McMENAMIN

Even before their side’s first points are scored there will be something for Canterbury rugby fans to cheer about at Lancaster Park this afternoon.

They have back, very nearly intact, the team which gave them so many memorable moments during the 1982-85 Ranfurly Shield tenure. Four months ago when almost half that side took off on an unannounced tour of South Africa there were fears that it may be a long time before Canterbury would have the services of its top players again. But so far, and there is still an inquiry to be completed into whether the players who visited South Africa under the name of Cavaliers infringed their amateur status, the only penalties imposed have been at national level. In the last three weeks Canterbury has had three games and Cavaliers have appeared in all three. But today will be the first time this year that the bulk of them have been in action together in the side.

They could well be needed, because Canterbury takes on an opponent, Wairarapa-Bush, which proved an early stumbling block to its national championship hopes last year. However, away from its home ground in Masterton Wairarapa-Bush might not be quite as forceful, although its final placing of fourth, two below Canter-

bury, in the first division race last year was no mean feat for a union of its size. So far this season, Wairarapa-Bush has not shown a lot. It beat Horowhenua early in the season, but then was well beaten by New Zealand Maoris before losing, 1219, to Wanganui last week. Today’s outing will be its first in the National Mutual-sponsored national championship so the attitude could be a bit different. It will be Canterbury’s second game, the first, against Taranaki on a cold,' wet day three weeks ago, bringing an impressive win. Since then Canterbury has beaten Marlborough and South Canterbury, but in neither game did it play particularly well, and fitting the Cavaliers back into the side has not been all that smooth an operation. But today, the old com-

binations will be struck and this, along with the fact that the game is on Lancaster Park, should enable the side to get closer to its best form. Wairarapa-Bush boasts no Cavaliers, and it has only one All Black, the flanker, Brett Harvey, who made his debut for New Zealand in the test against France at Lancaster Park last month.

However, it does have a number of players who have come through to higher honours this season. The full-back, Mark Benton, the centre, Marty Berry, the lock, Brent Anderson, and the prop, Chris Kapene, together with Harvey, have all been either North Island representatives or All Black triallsts this winter.

A young Fijian-bom wing, Sonny Rarasea, is also making a name for himself, especially in the try-scoring department. At near full strength and on a ground it knows so well, it is hard to imagine Canterbury losing to Wairarapa-Bush. It brushed aside fairly convincingly the two Ranfurly Shield challenges that union made in 1982 and 1984.

But Alex Wyllie will still not want his men too relaxed. Teams like Wairarapa-Bush can be devilishly hard to beat when they are taken cheaply and allowed to stay in a game until after half-time.

Wairarapa-Bush - Mark Benton' Michael Foster, Marty Berry, Sonny Rarasea; Stuart Cruden, Bernard Lett; Ivan Karaitiana; Tom Hullena, Brett Harvey, Brent Anderson, Stewart Walsh, Paul Hawkins; Chris Kapene, Motu Tua, Brian Stiles.