Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: The Zyon Maiu'u Debut For NZ Warriors
Zyon Maiu'u played 13 minutes in his NRL debut and in that period New Zealand Warriors scored two tries to drag themselves back into the Anzac Day contest vs Gold Coast Titans. Unfortunately for NZW and Maiu'u, his departure came in the 71st minute and NZW were unable to score another try to win this game. Maybe it was all Maiu'u, maybe it was just a lovely coincidence but either way there was an obvious pop every time Maiu'u ran the footy.
The Maiu'u debut for NZW was the final step to close a previous era, specifically the niggly influenza era. Maiu'u went to Kelston Boys High School and where he played 1st 15 with Roosters forward Naufahu Whyte, combining 1st 15 with rugby league as most Kiwi-NRL juniors do.
Starting 2020 in the NZW SG Ball team where he primarily played edge forward, Maiu'u stayed with NZW during a phase in which lots of junior squad spots vanished. As he finished up at KBHS, Te Atatu junior Maiu'u was shining in the NZRL Under 20s competition despite being one of the younger players in that competition. Somehow, wanting to play for NZW as a local junior meant moving to Australia and signs of the Kiwi-NRL junior talent were evident in how this crew of NZW juniors impressed in Queensland.
Leiataua, Demitric Sifakula, Jacob Laban and now Maiu'u have all made NRL debuts after spending time in with Redcliffe. Maiu'u didn't play in the 2022 Hastings-Deering Colts (Under 21s) final for Redcliffe but he played 13 games that season and all four of these NZW juniors were far younger than many of their peers in that competition.
Maiu'u made his NRL debut at 20-years-old, so he would still be eligible for Hastings-Deering Colts footy (no longer operating) and he could still line up for the NZW Jersey Flegg team. This gets crazier though as Maiu'u played 26 games of NSW Cup last year while still eligible for Under 19 SG Ball (SGB went from U18 to U19 in recent years) and his first season against fringe NRL talent saw Maiu'u tackle at 91% efficiency and average 97m/game.
There was a tweak in Maiu'u's role during that period. Maiu'u played edge and middle for Redcliffe U21s before making a shift to the middle under the two Andys (Webster and McFadden). The connection with Whyte offers another funky wrinkle as they are both playing middle forward but Whyte played midfield for KBHS 1st 15 and Maiu'u was a loose forward.
Maiu'u was mobile enough to play edge forward up until 2023 and rugged enough to spend most of his 1st 15 career battling in rucks. Now he is an ideal middle forward for NRL footy with enough speed, size and aggression to compete with any big bopper. Maiu'u enters NRL as a 20-year-old with 32 games of NSW Cup experience and his debut comes at a time when NZW need an explosion of energy coming off the bench.
This season Maiu'u has dipped down to 87m/game for NZW in NSW Cup and he hasn't played over 45 minutes in five games. While this may not suggest that Maiu'u was primed for an NRL debut, his NSW Cup footy is more aligned with his NRL role.
In his last NSW Cup game vs Dragons, Maiu'u had 10 runs - 106m @ 10.6m/run and his NRL debut produced 7 runs - 77m @ 11m/run. Maiu'u made 12 tackles @ 100% in NSW Cup vs Dragons and followed it up with 5 tackles @ 100% vs Titans. As NZW were struggling for attacking flow and resilient defence, Maiu'u rolled out the same mahi he offered in NSW Cup and his impact was felt at Mt Smart.
Maiu'u is still behind Marata Niukore, Bunty Afoa and Tom Ale in the middle forward depth chart but he seems like the ideal candidate for 10-15mins of oomph through the middle. Regardless of when Maiu'u is called upon to play NRL footy, NZW fans will know exactly what Maiu'u offers and how he will play. If Maiu'u can repeat the 13mins of his NRL debut he will swiftly become a favourite of the Mt Smart faithful.
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