Kiwi NRL Stocks Round 13
Research suggest Sifa Talakai was born in Sydney, but is kiwi/Tongan. Regardless, he chose the Junior Kiwis so chur. He was also once a kitchen hand.
Stocks Up
Jordan Rapana: Sometimes I wish I didn't have to write about Rapana, I've kinda run out of superlatives to describe a bloke who must now be considered among the top-three wingers in the NRL. Up against a pretty sloppy Manly Sea Eagles team, Rapana didn't score a try but he did have the most carries with 18 and why wouldn't you when you're leading all tackle busts with 7? Rapana had 191m from those 18 carries, putting him over the magic 10m-per-carry marker ... wait, most carries, most metres and most tackle busts? This guy's the goods.
Simon Mannering: In theory, any kiwi Warriors player saw their stocks rise as they all turned in an improved effort but I've settled on Mannering as the best reflection of the Warriors against the Broncos. Mannering got through his usual stack of tackles (39) and was busy with the footy as he took 13 carries for 72m but it was his 2 offloads that caught my eye and his passing as 11 times he got the footy, he passed it on to someone else. This moves Mannering away from being a one dimensional lock that tackles/runs and the Warriors look a whole lot better with Mannering often getting into first-receiver, or standing in a tackle and offering up an offload.
Issac Luke: One of the scapegoats of the Warriors early season woes, Luke has consistently improved and as the Warriors rolled through the middle, Luke was heavily involved. He played 52 minutes which is a hefty shift and most importantly, Luke was an eager runner of the footy, running 10 times for 65m which reaped obvious benefits as Luke also had a try assist and 2 tackle busts.
Jason Taumalolo: The Cowboys have the best forward pack in the NRL and the Knights certainly don't. This makes Taumalolo a bit of a bully as he offered up no chill in beating the Knights up through the middle, especially with James Tamou and Matt Scott playing less minutes than usual after Origin. Taumalolo played 51 minutes, had 16 carries for 171m and got through his standard dose of tackle busts with 4. Need I remind you once again that Taumalolo is an absolute freak?
Melbourne Storm Kiwi Gang: Another fantastic night for the Storm's gang of kiwis which is best summarized by a combined 17 tackle busts, or a combined 621m.
Jesse Bromwich: 58mins, 19 carries, 193m, 6 tackle busts, 27 tackles.
Kevin Proctor: 74mins, 14 carries, 103m, 4 tackle busts, 32 tackles, 1 offload, 1 line break.
Tohu Harris: 80mins, 21 carries, 179m, 3 tackle busts, 28 tackles, 1 offload.
Kenny Bromwich: 27mins, 7 carries, 51m, 14 tackles.
Nelson Asofa-Solomona: 22mins, 6 carries, 95m, 1 try assist, 4 tackle busts, 14 tackles, 2 offloads, 1 line break.
Stop .... read through Nelson Asofa-Solomona's stats again, this dude packs a punch.
Dallin Watene-Zelezniak: In a losing Penrith side, DWZ was super busy off the wing with 19 carries for 159m and 4 tackle busts. Not every kiwi cuzzie is going to be playing in a team like the Cowboys or Storm, but it's great to see our kiwi cuzzies stacking up big numbers in a losing effort; DWZ had the most metres and tackle busts of any Penrith player.
Jared Waerea-Hargreaves: I think many people would have overlooked the influence of JWH in this Roosters team and it shouldn't be too hard to connect the dots between him being out injured and the Roosters struggling. JWH was immense against the Tigers, putting in a big 66 minute shift which included 21 carries, 203m, 3 tackle busts and an offload.
Sam Moa: JWH's return completes the Roosters huge forward pack, but Moa isn't the biggest dude going around. Moa does offer something slightly different to JWH, Dylan Napa, Kane Evans etc as he's more of a cannon-ball and this cannon-ball was at his best against the Tigers with 53 minutes, 14 carries, 147m, 2 tackle busts and an offload.
Siosifa Talakai: Debut debut! The 2016 Junior Kiwi came off the bench for the Rabbitohs against the Titans and was pretty damn impressive in 27 minutes of action as he had 5 carries for 57m with 3 tackle busts. Ah and he scored on debut, with his first touch, just like Reimis Smith a few weeks ago.
I don't really know where to put this so...
Cronulla Sharks coach Shane Flanagan has slipped back into confusing territory as for the past few weeks he has put Ricky Leutele (born in Brisbane so, meh) on the bench. That impacts Sosaia Feki and Gerard Beale, in very different ways. Feki made way for Leutele, only playing 54 minutes and that's a bummer for one of the better low key wingers in the NRL while Leutele has made way for a resurgent Beale to start at centre. Beale played 80 minutes at centre, taking 14 carries for 118m and you can't really argue with him starting.
With my kiwi-bias in my backpack, I want to see Feki and Beale start and play 80 minutes. Leutele is a slick operator and hasn't really done anything wrong, so this is getting pretty damn confusing. Screw Jack Bird, right?
Stocks Down
Lewis Brown: Despite enjoying some consistency with Manly, stepping in for Martin Taupau on the edge, Brown might as well have not laced up the boots against Canberra. Brown played all 80 minutes, had 13 touches with 4 carries for 25m and if you need some context then compare that to Jamie Buhrer who only played 66 minutes, also had 13 touches but had 10 carries for 76m on the other edge. Brown also conceded 3 penalties which was the most of any player in this game and missed 5 tackles, the most of any Manly player.
Danny Levi: The young kiwi dummy half only played 6 minutes less than Luke and despite having 44 touches at dummy half, Levi only ran the footy once for 6m. Levi is in a struggling Knights team, similar to Brown but this Knights team loves to play an exciting brand of footy and if Levi can run a bit more, he'd go a long way to sparking their attack.
Ava Seumanufagai: Up against the Roosters and their ruthless forward pack, Seumanufagai didn't quite step up to the occasion. He played 42 minutes, a decent shift but could only manage 8 carries for 64m, with his 2 tackle busts hinting at what could have been if Seumanufagai was slightly busier. Consider this a learning curve for Seumanufagai who has been solid this season and will need to contribute more against better forward packs.
Josh Aloiai: Same story here for Aloiai, who played 36 minutes with 3 carries for 26m. The Tigers need their young forwards to step up to the plate and compete with opposing packs, Aloiai now has the blueprint laid out for him.