Two Raetihi players go international

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 256, 27 September 1988, Page 7

Two Raetihi players go international

Two members of the Raetihi Rugby team have been chosen to represent their country in National Selection teams.

It was armounced on Sunday, September 18 by New Zealand Rugby Union Chairman Russ Thomas that Raetihi senior player and Captain of the Wanganui Representative side Steve Gordon was included in the New Zealand Second and Third division rugby team to tour the Cook Islands, Tonga and Fiji next month. Steve was named along with fellow reps John Hainsworth (he and Steve make up the midfield partnership 'The Bruise Brothers') and Bruce Hansen. Hainsworth and Hansen play for the Marton Old Boys Club. . The team is to be led by former All Black flanker Mark Shaw and coached by national selector Lane Penn. Steve is naturally pleased to have been selected for the team especially as he was a leading candidate for the New Zealand Maoris. It is rumoured that the 'Bruise Brothers' were saved for the bigger Island players. Thomas Waara was selected to travel with the World Youth Rugby team made up o f provincial players from throughout New Zealand. All players are under 21. The team, to

be coached by the great Colin (Pine Tree) Meads, is travelling to Argentina for three weeks. They leave on October 5 and tour Argentina playing six games including the world team selected after the World Youth Rugby Tournament which is being held while the New Zealand youths are at Tucuman. They travel throughout Argentina including Buenos Aires and Salta and will e x p e rience the contrasting conditions of the rich and the poor people of the land. Thomas Waara's early rugby success includes playing Rangitikei Rep rugby from Raetihi Primary School and gaining a position in the Ruapehu College lst XV in his first year at college, a team h e later captained. While always a stickler for practice and training Thomas' school rugby fitness was mostly a result of his passion for p i g hunting. A sturdy, hard running heady centre, Thomas went on to play for Northern Wanganui, Northern Wanganui Colts and the Wanganui Colts.