Last season's Trans-Tasman clash between the Junior Kiwis and Junior Kangaroos was a bit different than usual. While your were either admiring the passion of the two teams in the wee ruckus that kicked off during the haka or looking on in disgust at the behaviour of these young men, a fantastic game of rugby league took place.

A fantastic game which the young lads from Aotearoa narrowly won against a team of Aussies with seven players who had played in the NRL, compared to the Kiwis who had just one. The Aussies were stacked with talent, as they usually are but so were the Junior Kiwis who went down a different route than they have in the past. The Junior Warriors won the Holden Cup in 2014, which used to mean that the majority of the team would earn Junior Kiwis selection but this time around only Sam Lisone and Adam Tuimavave-Gerrard (who is now a Dragon) were selected from Mt Smart.

The Junior Kiwis boasted many talented youngins' from around the NRL, with many of them having represented Australia at various age group levels. One could argue that this is the NZRL enjoying the rewards of their hard work to ensure that players from Aotearoa who travel the most common path to the NRL - moving to Australia with an NRL club, are kept in the Kiwi's system. Or one could say that it's more a case of these young players finally looking at the Kiwis as a viable option whether it's thanks to the Kiwis winning and it being 'cool' or that some sort of pathway has been outlined clearly.

I must stress that the majority of young Kiwis who work their way in to the NRL with Australian clubs do so by moving to Australia at a young age. They get spotted at intermediate or high school rugby and rugby league tournaments and are rightfully offered a career pathway that can't be found in Aotearoa. This means that their pathway to the NRL can influence their allegiance to either Aotearoa or Australia, simply because they want to earn a living doing what they love. Look at Jason Taumalolo and Benji Marshall (and many more) who were brought to Townsville and the Gold Coast (Keebra Park) in their early teens to chase their NRL dreams with the Cowboys and Tigers. Rightfully, they both made Australian schoolboys teams because A) they're awesome and B) they were playing in Australian competitions so there's not many choices. Thankfully they, like many in this current Junior Kiwis side, understand where there hearts lay, but it's a pretty hectic decision when you have two sides pulling at you.

There's some stars in this Junior Kiwis side, which is why it kind of sucked that many people only cared about the scuffle at the start. You may remember Nelson Asofa-Solomona as the beast of a kid from Wellington who was going to join the Melbourne Storm. Well he did, and he's going bloody well with the Storm Under 20's. He's been training with the full-time Storm squad and there's a high possibility that the kid gets some first grade experience at some stage this year.

Fun Fact!! - Former 1st 15 rugby star with Saint Kentigern College Suliasi Vunivalu also joined the Storm after finishing school. He featured for their Under 20's and played in the NSW Cup as well, going rather nicely

There's a few lads who have followed the path blazed by Benji Marshall and many other young Kiwis by graduating from Keebra Park High School and joining the West Tigers. There's Watson Heleta, Manaia Cherrington, Lamar Liolevave and Te Maire Martin and ironically the latter, Te Maire Martin resembles Marshall nicely. All of these lads appear highly regarded by the Tigers with re-signings happening all over the show, but thanks to plenty of depth at hooker (Cherrington) and in the halves (Martin) we'll probably only see Liolevave (forward) and Heleta (centre) get a sniff of first grade if the stars align. They all form a dynamic group of youngsters at the Tigers which will ensure that they climb the NRL ranks in the next few years.

They have been joined by Chance Peni, who left Newcastle to head west and become a Tiger. He's a quick outside back who could get a run in the NRL if a spot opens up on the wing. He leaves the Knights and much like the Tigers, they had a crew of Junior Kiwis who will be keen to impress on a developing NRL team. Unfortunately, Joseph Tapine who looked good in the NRL last season, featuring throughout the season in their pack has got himself in some off field dramas over the summer. Don't like reporting that shit, but it's key to note that Tapine did play NRL last season under Wayne Bennett so the kid obviously goes alright and if he can right his ship, he should be back in the NRL at some stage. Young hooker Danny Levi is an exciting prospect and could find himself in the NRL this season as the Knights rebuild, but he'll have to be patient.

Zach Docker-Clay is on par with Martin as an exciting young half and it's awesome to see these halves coming through the system. He'll have to wait a bit to get a run with the Eels in the NRL but he's a hot prospect and if he can't find an opportunity at Parramatta, expect other clubs to come sniffing for his signature.

Sam Lisone is expected to develop in to a strong NRL prop after being a star with the Junior Warriors. He'll keep the current NRL props honest as he'll probably slug it out in NSW Cup to start the season but don't be surprised to see him playing first grade at some stage. Former team mate Adam Tuimavave-Gerrard will be hoping to make a mark at his new club the Dragons. He'll be working hard to try get a spot on the edge for the Dragons but like Lisone he'll probably start out in NSW Cup but don't sleep on Tuimavave-Gerrard making some waves with the Dragons as they need some powerfull ball runners. They've got two good youngsters in Tuimavave-Gerrard and big bopper Addin Fonua-Blake who the Dragons love. Both these Junior Kiwis give the Dragons exactly what they need so keep an eye on how they develop over the season.

While the likes of Taane Milne (another former college rugby star) might not get as great an opportunity as many of the other Junior Kiwis as the Roosters have plenty of depth, Sam Manuleleua might benefit from the fall of Kirisome Auva'a. He'll likely have to be patient though as the Rabbitohs also have plenty of depth. A Rooster, well former Roosters who probably won't have to be as patient as these two is Braden Uele who is very, very highly regarded. Former Roosters Under 20's coach Paul Green loved Uele so much he's snatched him and taken him north to the Cowboys who need a few young big boppers to help ease the load on James Tamou and Matt Scott. Expect Uele to play a fair bit of NRL foot this season.

Lastly, we've got Kodi Nikorima who could emerge as a surprise fullback option for Wayne Bennett at the Brisbane Broncos after Darius Boyd's achilles snapped. If Nikorima impresses in the pre-season with trials and the NRL Nines being right up his alley, he could find himself starting the season in the number 1 jersey. There's plenty of competition though for that jersey so he'll have to knock the door down.

Aotearoa has always had a strong influence on the NRL which largely goes unnoticed. League fans in Aotearoa have always known this while the bandwagon Warriors fans and the NRL themselves haven't been so wise. The NRL has begun to notice that Aotearoa is gold mine, not so much for talent but more financially and we're seeing our wee nation start to see some rewards with the Nine's and now the season launch taking place in Auckland. That and many NRL clubs taking home games to Aotearoa as well. We're starting to see things level out slightly and with the Junior Kiwis beating an awesome Junior Kangaroos side, 2015 could be the year where we see more young Kiwi lads becoming dominant forces in the NRL.