Chance to shine for host of Southland talent
From the ranks of the Highlanders to a muster of Southland rugby’s teenage up-and-comers, the chance to impress and develop has come.
Playing spot the Stag has been a headspinning task at Highlanders training sessions lately, where eight of the Southland team have been footing it with the franchise players.
Ethan de Groot, Marty Banks and Scott Gregory are there on full contracts.
Isaac Te Tamaki, Josh Bekhuis and Jacob Payne have been with the squad since Monday last week, covering for injuries ahead of a preseason showdown with the Crusaders.
From the national development squad, Hayden Michaels and Jack Taylor have been honing their skills.
Coach Clarke Dermody has welcomed the infusion: ‘‘It’s good to be able to keep giving these boys a shot.’’
It’s been a good pre-season to date, he said, though ‘‘a bit longer than in the last few years’’.
As for how good, ‘‘we’ll find out next week’’.
After a Covid-impelled hiatus last year, the Highlanders will take on the Crusaders for the Farmlands Cup in Weston, North Otago, on February 10. The cup is contested annually at a different grassroots venue.
Meanwhile, Rugby Southland is rounding up roughly 150 schoolaged talents for the Ralph Moir Ltd Rugby Southland Musters in Winton, Gore and Invercargill February 13-15.
It’s a platform for promising U16-U18 male and female players, many of them identified through last year’s representative programme, under the guidance of Rugby Southland pathways manager Scott Eade.
The musters have become a crucial component of the pathways programme, used to identify the most promising and dedicated players who would move on to further training and development.