To bench or not coach's call | Hawkes Bay Sport | Surfing, Rugby, Soccer, Football, Cricket in Hawkes Bay

SUDDENLY Chris Greatholder has a headache.

Who does the coach leave out after his Kinetic Electrical Hawke's Bay United put the sword to city slickers Waitakere United at home last Sunday?

"Yes, it's a headache but a good one, I suppose," Greatholder said ahead of his troops locking horns with YoungHeart Manawatu at 2pm in Palmerston North tomorrow in their ASB Premiership football match.

"For the past 24 hours, we've been looking at who we're going to play," he said.

A predominantly young Bay side pipped Waitakere 1-0 last weekend.

Key senior players, including captain/centreback Bill Robertson, who were either injured, suspended or unavailable are back in the equation tomorrow at Memorial Park.

"Some good footballers will miss out and won't even make the bench.

"Six weeks ago that's exactly what we wanted," said Greatholder who took over as coach after Englishman Matt Chandler suddenly left three rounds into the premiership late last year to coach in Australia.

He feels it's hard to go past the team last Sunday who "absolutely worked their socks off" against Waitakere who were missing several seniors like the Bay.

First-choice goalkeeper Richard Gillespie, returning from a long-term injury, will be hard pressed to replace Shaun Peta who had a blinder.

Veteran Leon Birnie, with 29 premiership goals to his credit and in line to play his 66th match, will also have to push his way into a robust midfield with Englishman Connor Tinnion raising the bar.

Robertson will no doubt return to the fray to slip back on the black armband from Stephen Hindmarch in a defensive line-up lacking genuine specialist defenders.

Matt Hastings, coming off the bench, has rolled his sleeves up with aplomb to share the responsibility of marshalling the Beefeaters with Danny Wilson.

Greatholder, who was part of this summer's playing squad, finds his role as coach has changed to someone who has to manage personalities, egos and footballers.

"I don't want to downgrade the boys' efforts last week but we're going to be no more valuable this weekend than we were last week," he said after pointing out last Sunday he didn't think the win was a fluke.

While it was vital for his men not to panic after the 5-2 drubbing at the hands of Team Wellington, it was equally imperative they weren't swept away in a wave of euphoria in toppling Waitakere United.

"All of a sudden, it's quite exciting to be on the bench, knowing your teammates will come off the field having given everything out there."

Not making training on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and expecting to make the playing squad was wishful thinking.

The Stu Jacobs-coached YoungHearts are bottom of the table with just one point, coming off a 9-1 flogging against Canterbury United last weekend.

The Bay, who are seeking their maiden play-offs berth in the eight-season-old premiership, will shed the underdogs tag to become top dogs in the battle but Greatholder was loath to entertain any fanciful thoughts, let alone the double header the following weekend away against Canterbury United and hosting undefeated leaders Auckland City.

"They will be up for it and give it all for Stu," he said.

The men from the other side of the Manawatu Gorge held the Bay to a 2-2 draw at Bluewater Stadium in round two on November 6.

The hosts, who last beat the Bay in 2009 when ex-Bay striker Seule Soromon scored, are a bogey side for the visitors.

They seem to find another gear at the height of battle.

For their coach Jacobs tomorrow is about redemption.

"After last weekend we have a hell of a job on our hands to get some respectability back.

"It'll be all about assuming some sort of dignity," the coach lamented, adding they had placed ticks next to several teams' names as "winning games" but had come off second best.

With the exodus of experienced players such as Cory Chettleburgh and Adam Cowan, in his debut season for the Bay, YoungHeart are struggling.

However, the neighbouring franchise are refraining from signing up imports to fill the void.

Instead, in the mould of Waikato United coach Declan Edge's philosophy, they are introducing academy players such as Hamish McKay as well as a budding goalkeeper and a university student in the midfield.

"These boys are the future of the franchise so it's a learning curve for us so long as we don't drop the load along the way," Jacobs said, adding Edge's persistence over the years had built a fluid team of lads who were enjoying a great brand of soccer which was a yardstick for the rest of the country to follow.

"Declan's put the stake on the ground regarding New Zealand Football and we want to follow that," Jacobs said.

Getting home-grown talent on the grass more and into the gym more was primarily the goal of the board there with the intention of eventually finding pathways to bigger stages for players to hone their skills.

"When I was the Miramar coach some time ago it took me five years to win a championship [the former National League]," said Jacobs, who believes losing games, as Edge did for a few seasons, was the price to pay for long-term development and success.