Central League 2009

Wairarapa United treated a good-sized and appreciative crowd to their best performance of the season when they upset fourth-placed Petone 3-2 in their Central League football match at Hullena Park, Masterton, yesterday.

It was a stunning all-round display by the home team and the perfect farewell for coach Phil Keinzley if, as seems likely, it turns out to be his last home game in the coaching role.

Keinzley had said he is quitting because of Masterton District Council inaction at rectifying ground condition hassles at Wairarapa United's Pugh Sports Bowl headquarters, a situation which might well lead to the demise of the club as a whole.

Just what a massive blow that would be for Wairarapa sport was exemplified by yesterday's match which had spectators buzzing at the high standard of football produced by both sides.

Wairarapa United actually dominated the first 20 minutes in terms of territory and possession but it was Petone who drew first blood, striker Paul Whitmarsh netting from close range.

Soon after it became 1-1 with Seule Soromon sending All White goalkeeper James Bannatyne the wrong way with a penalty awarded after Adam Cowan had been brought down while making a searching run.

Petone launched a dangerous attack which ended with Wairarapa United 'keeper Richard Gillespie diving to make the save and then the home side took the lead. Fullback Carl Shailer made a long run down the left flank before centring the ball and Nick Roydhouse finished in style.

Up 2-1 at the break Wairarapa United started the second half in much the same authoritative manner as they did the first but again it was Petone who managed to score the first goal of the spell. Again too it was Whitmarsh who did the damage after the Wairarapa United defence had been opened up by a well-placed free kick.

Now it was anybody's game and happily for Wairarapa United fans it was the locals who came up with what was to be the deciding goal.

A corner kick from Roydhouse was fumbled by Bannatyne and Waisake Sabatu was in the right place at the right time to head the ball into the back of the net.

That coach Keinzley elected to keep his starting line-up on the field for the entire match was not surprising because the commitment of all 11 players, both on attack and defence, was truly outstanding.

Goalkeeper Gillespie made the one brilliant save and another couple which were little less spectacular and there was a comforting surety about the play of those directly in front of him - Shailer, Sakeo Valevou, Sabatu and James Oxtoby. They not only defended stoutly
but also linked effectively on attack as well.

In the midfield Cowan, despite still batting a foot injury, and Roydhouse were elusive runners on the ball and especially effective on the counter attack, captain Pita Rabo worked tirelessly and intercepted several opposition passes, and Miriek Tvaroh was typically hard-nosed on the tackle and an accurate distributor.

But the two real crowd pleasers for Wairarapa United were strikers Seule Soromon and Campbell Banks both of whom constantly tormented the Petone defence with their ability to create space, either for themselves or for their supports. Soromon's speed off the mark was especially impressive and he could have added at least another couple of goals to his tally with an ounce of luck.

assertive midfielder Miriek Tvaroh ... picked up his fifth yellow card in Wairarapa United�s stunning 3-2 win over Petone at Hullena Park last Sunday and that means an automatic one-game suspension.

The Wairarapa football fraternity is waiting with bated breath to see what transpires from a meeting he and CEO Wes ten Hove have had with Wairarapa United chairman Phil Keinzley.

Right at the top of the agenda was how best to overcome the hassles which have seen Wairarapa United's flagship Central League side play only three of their home games at their Pugh Sports Bowl headquarters this season.

Most of the problems have concerned the state of the playing surface there.

Central league is the second highest tier of domestic football in New Zealand and you simply can't expect players at that level to perform on sub-standard pitches.

Yes, there will be times when the weather man dictates that surfaces are going to become heavy and uneven but it's way past a joke when they provide an inconsistent bounce on a regular basis.

Which is what would have been happening at the Sports Bowl had it been used to any extent.

Fortunately, Wairarapa United have not had to concede their home advantage because of this situation but they came close.

Had not Queen Elizabeth Park Oval been made available for a couple of games and Masterton AFC kindly offering the use of Hullena Park for three or four others those matches would very probably been transferred out of the region.

Cricket, understandably, has first call on the Park Oval while the Masterton club rightly puts the needs of their own sides at the head of their priority list.

Mind you, the cricket people might well wonder why if football can't be played at the Park Oval after a certain time to allow the cricket wickets there to be in top shape for the start of their season how come they never seem to play club games there from the word go?

Last season, for example, there was such a shortage of cricket wickets available in the Masterton area that without the good graces of Rathkeale College and Wairarapa College whoever was responsible for the draws would have faced an impossible task.

And, quite frankly, you have to worry about what will happen this coming cricket season too as the so-called remedial work at the Park Sportsground certainly doesn't seem to have provided the sort of grass cover which would make fielding a pleasant experience.

In fact, watching football games there you get the impression it's not exactly done anything for that sport either!

But back to the Sports Bowl.

If it remains first cab off the rank on the council's list of possible of home grounds for Wairarapa United - and reading between the lines there is no certainty of that - then Mayor Daniell must direct those responsible for its upkeep to do everything in their power to have it in the best possible shape, week after week.

Not like this year when remedial work there didn't seem to get into full swing until about the start of the football season and then lapsed as it progressed.

For a week or two it was actually in reasonable nick but when a season runs for something like five months that's hardly good enough, is it? Indeed it's downright woeful.

What Mayor Daniell and his fellow councillors need to remember is that if Wairarapa United's home ground is not deemed suitable for Central League play then there is the very real prospect of not only that team's future being in jeopardy but that of the whole club as well.

Which would be a huge loss considering the opportunity they also provide for the area's junior players to compete against the best of their age groups in the greater Wellington region.

And they shape up well too, judging by the unbeaten run of the Wairarapa United 12th grade side this season.

That Wairarapa United has had its detractors over the years for one reason or another is very true but there is no question they have raised the profile of football in the province and Wairarapa sport in general would be considerably worse off without them.

In fact, when it comes to spectator appeal their Central League side is arguably the most popular club team over all codes operating in the province, and deservedly so when you consider they are currently ranked the top non-Wellington-based side in their competition.

Below them are the best club teams from Hawke's Bay, Taranaki and Palmerston North

Some critics will be quick to note a number of their players are "imports" but all other Central League sides are in the same boat. And, anyway, if you want to get bums on seats these days it is important to provide a marketable product, and Wairarapa United have certainly done that.

It's not as if guaranteeing Wairarapa United suitable ground conditions, and changing rooms as well, at the Pugh Sports Bowl, or probably anywhere else either, would cost huge sums of money either.

On the scale of things it would probably pale into insignificance when compared with the monies being talked about to upgrade the council offices, and you
could argue with some strength which is most important, couldn't you?