Kiwi NRL Stocks Round 20
Can Sitaleki Akauola hold on to a Penrith bench spot as they chase a Finals spot?
Stocks Up
Jason Taumalolo: At this stage of the season, expect any slick Cowboys performance to stem from yet another powerful game from Jason Taumalolo. In a big win over the Bulldogs, Taumalolo was his rampant self as he led a dominant display form the Cowboys forwards through the middle of the park. In 52 minutes, Taumalolo had 20 carries for 196m with 2 tackle busts and an offload.
Suaia Matagi: Starting at prop, Matagi was nothing short of a beast in 26 minutes. It was a brief stint in the middle for Matagi but the Panthers didn't need big minutes, they needed his power and Matagi gave that in 12 carries with 128m. That's over 10m per-carry and keep in mind that he had 12 carries in just 26 minutes - Penrith would have barely had 12 sets in 26 minutes.
Sitaleki Akauola: I was low key impressed by Manurewa's Akauola who came off the bench and continued the strong work of Matagi up the guts. In 25 minutes, Akauola had 6 carries for 64m and maintained a powerful presence that helped Penrith roll down field. This came with Reagan Campbell-Gillard not playing though which pushed Matagi to start, so I'm interested in how Anthony Griffin uses Akauola throughout the rest of the season. They are currently in the mix to snatch a top-8 spot and Akauola kinda has his foot in the door at the moment with strong performances, contributing to wins so hopefully he features consistently from this point on.
Jordan Rapana: Another tackle-busting lesson from Rapana on the right wing for Canberra as he had the most tackle busts of anyone in this game with 8, to go with 16 carries for 141m. There was also a try assist, line break assist, offload and line break in what must be considered business as usual for Rapana.
Josh Hoffman: With Konrad Hurrell on the right, Gold Coast have a genuine attacking threat on either edge in the centres as Hoffman's rolling through consistently strong performances on left. Hoffman ensured that his opposite Brad Takairangi missed 4 tackles, with Hoffman taking 14 carries for 122m thanks to 3 tackle busts.
Kenny Edwards: One of the bright spots - along with Manu Ma'u - for the Eels this season has been Edwards' work out on the edges and in a losing effort against Gold Coast, Edwards was again strong carrying the footy. Edwards had 9 carries for 101m which came thanks to a game-high 7 tackle busts.
Jesse Bromwich: Despite their size, the Roosters forward pack doesn't quite dominate teams as they have done previously and they definitely weren't going to dominate Jesse Bromwich. In 65 minutes, Bromwich had 17 carries and 157m.
Tohu Harris: I highlighted last week that Harris has slotted back into consistent game time on Melbourne's left edge after filling holes for much of the season and in the run home, having Harris out there on the left edge is like having a bit of a wildcard. Harris is huge, has great feet and is skilled enough to play in the halves which allows Melbourne to hit their middle forwards and then shift to the left with Blake Green and Harris, where Harris brings the ruckus. Harris played 75 minutes against the Chooks and had 18 carries for 137m with 2 tackle busts, an offload and a line break along with 33 tackles.
Sosaia Feki & Gerard Beale: I've lumped these two together because they definitely deserve some love for their performances against Newcastle as they combined for 10 tackle busts, 221m and 2 tries. This comes with an asterix though as they were playing Newcastle and I can't go all-in on stocks rising when it's against Newcastle. I will be keeping close tabs on these two as the Sharks face tougher opposition in bigger games over the next month or so as they form a lethal outside back group for Cronulla.
Martin Taupau: All I need to do to highlight how Taupau is back at his rampaging best is to compare his numbers to those of George Burgess. Taupau played 39 minutes and had 11 carries for 105m while Burgess played 46 minutes and had 9 carries for 76 ... meaning that Taupau played less minutes and had more carries/metres than big George.
Stocks Down
Sam Kasiano: It shouldn't come as a surprise that the Bulldogs were torched up in Townsville and Sam Kasiano took a major dip in his personal form. Up to this point, Kasiano had been the splash of funk that the Doggies needed and when he's only playing 26 minutes he's gotta offer much more than 5 carries for 34 and a few offloads. Watch out for how Kasiano finishes the season as a good patch during the Origin period is fine, but his Doggies need him to do that when it really matters.
Adam Blair: Down on a few troops, Wayne Bennett had to put Blair out on the left edge and unfortunately for Blair and the Broncos it didn't really work out. Blair had 9 carries for 69m in 71 minutes wtih a few offloads and also missed 3 tackles, allowing James Fisher-Harris to enjoy a solid night's work with 11 carries, 73m, 4 tackle busts and 3 offloads. Interestingly, both Blair and Fisher-Harris are from the naughty Northland and Blair started his career on an edge so it was kinda a 'full circle' moment as he came up a bloke in Fisher-Harris who is effectively a young version of Blair.
Jared Waerea-Hargreaves: A knee injury meant that JWH only played 19 minutes against Melbourne and it's yet another injury setback for the big kiwi prop. Without being too dramatic, JWH has suffered plenty of injuries in recent times and with plenty of depth in our Kiwis forward pack, he's quickly sliding down the Four Nations pecking order.