How Parramatta Eels Became The Funkiest Kiwi-NRL Team of 2021
In the midst of 2020 shenanigans, Parramatta Eels were already one of the funkier Kiwi-NRL teams. Northland's Dylan Brown quickly settled into a starting halves role and Auckland's Marata Niukore was shining where ever he was required. Signing Isaiah Papalii and Nathaniel Roache from Aotearoa Warriors perked up the antenna further, mainly because the Eels had shown supreme development in Brown and Niukore which was to be focused on two Aucklanders eager to pounce on their potential.
Mangere East Hawks junior Niukore had come up through the Warriors system and the Eels then snapped up two former Mount Albert Grammar School homies from the Warriors. That makes it seem like the Eels had found a rich vein within the walls of Mt Smart and that has recently been amplified as the Eels signed Hayze Perham; whom Warriors specifically recruited as part of a loose connection with Rotorua Boys High School.
Perham's signing however, came after the Eels grabbed on Wiremu Greig a few weeks ago. North Queensland Cowboys had recruited Greig from Northland and this is where different strategies in recruiting from Aotearoa become evident. The Cowboys are one of the busiest NRL clubs in snapping up youngsters from Aotearoa and invest in longer deals, either moving the teenagers to Townsville or keeping them in Aotearoa with training camps in Aotearoa and trips to Townsville.
The Cowboys did this with Greig and Tukimihia Simpkins (RBHS), both have left the Cowboys in 2021 with Simpkins joining an abundance of Kiwi-NRL prospects moving to Wests Tigers under Aotearoa Kiwis coach Michael Maguire. They had Christchurch's Fa'atili brothers on development type deals, both are now playing for Brisbane Broncos affiliated clubs.
The Cowboys have done this with Greymouth's Griffin Neame and he's on the cusp of an NRL debut. They also have Manurewa Marlins junior D'jazirhae Pua'avase and Manukura College's Arama Kite playing in the Mal Meninga Cup Grand Final for Townsville Blackhawks this weekend.
Couple funky angles...
Perham and Simpkins came through RBHS. Eels product Haze Dunster is also from Rotorua.
Brown and Greig came through Northland Rugby League - Brown played with Paul Turner for Northern Swords.
Arama Kite played for Tamatea Rugby in Hawke's Bay - Tohu Harris' junior club.
While Cowboys are heavily invested in finding talent in Aotearoa, Brown is the only current Eels player from Aotearoa who they recruited from Aotearoa. The Cumberland Throw documented Brown's journey through the Eels system and this apparently started with Brown being scouted by Anthony Field, then attending camps with Daniel Anderson. This is notable because Field now appears to have moved on from Eels, working with Ignite Sports in player management and Anderson is working his magic with Sydney Roosters.
This points to a time period where the Eels had recruited Brown from Whangarei as well as Joseph Taipari from Christchurch, perhaps overlapping with Josh Aloiai (Glenora Bears) moving from Auckland to Parramatta Eels. Aloiai played 2014 Junior Kiwis as an Eel, while Brown and Taipari formed a halves combination that led the Eels SG Ball team (U18) to the 2017 SG Ball Championship. Aloiai then moved to Tigers and Sea Eagles, while Taipari moved to Tigers ahead of the 2020 season.
In recent times, the Eels have been far more active in snaring fringe or up and coming Kiwi-NRL talent. This may be due to 2020 impacting club finances and thus the resources poured into housing/looking after kiwi prospects or simply adjusting recruitment staff and thus their tactics. Regardless, for the Eels both methods have worked reasonably well and they have a fantastic recent record of identifying talent that fits their needs and development.
Niukore was a Junior Kiwi in 2015 and 2016, while also being a captain of Warriors Under 20s. In 2016 Niukore was joined by his Warriors homies Roache and Papalii in the Junior Kiwis. That is to say that Niukore was already a fine prospect and for whatever reason the Warriors didn't feel the need to show Niukore the love, plus there is connective tissue between these lads as they came up through the Auckland scene together.
Brown and Niukore flourished as soon as they linked up with the Eels. Brown did so in the junior teams, Niukore did so cracking into the Eels NRL team as a impact forward off the bench. Brown is undeniably one of the best running/tackling halves in the NRL and Niukore's gone from limited middle forward minutes to being a viable centre. Isaiah Papalii? You know the yarn.
The development of Brown, Niukore and Papalii frames excitement around Roache, plus new arrivals Greig and Perham. Greig couldn't get a game with the Cowboys and quickly moved into the Eels NRL team where he steadily hit the 10m/run mark in limited game time. Perham's in a similar spot as he couldn't get a crack with the Warriors and the Eels pounced. This week Perham is named at fullback and Greig is starting at prop in the Eels NSW Cup team, along with Roache coming off the bench.
Brown and Greig didn't play Junior Kiwis, or much NZRL representative footy. The 2017 NZ Under 18 vs Australia School Boys game is funky as Perham played fullback for Aotearoa and his Rotorua buddy Dunster played on the wing for Aussie. The Aotearoa team had Taipari coming off the bench, along with Valance Harris who is part of the Kiwi-NRL Eels and along with this NZRL U18 game, Harris was named in the 2019 U19 Junior Kiwis wider squad.
The 2019 Junior Kiwis (last JK game played) also had Charbel Tasipale who is part of the Eels NSW Cup team. Tasipale has already represented Lebanon for World Cup Nines. This bolsters the Kiwi-NRL whanau at the Eels with Harris and Tasipale representing Aotearoa at some level (like NSW's Jarome Luai and Queensland's Moeaki Fotuaika), while Dunster is an interesting case as he tries to add to his NRL appearance last year and hasn't quite aligned with Aotearoa.
From that, there's an insight into how muddled international eligibility can be.
Maybe it's because the Eels have two Rotorua Haze/Hayze bros. Maybe it's because the Eels have two of Aotearoa's best young talents in Brown and Greig who went to Whangarei Intermediate together. Maybe it's because the Eels re-united Niukore with Papalii and Roache from their Warriors days together. Maybe it's because in their respectvie NRL opportunities, these lads have all progressed swiftly and now Perham gets that chance.
Whatever it is for you, tap into Parramatta Eels Kiwi-NRL business. You'll find all sorts of Kiwi-NRL trainspotting funk and based on how 2021 has started for the Eels, you'll also find some of the best rugby league players from Aotearoa contributing to a good footy team.
Peace and love.