After a couple niggly years trying to gather NRLWahine momentum, 2022 starts with a fresh NRLWahine campaign featuring Aotearoa's best wahine footy players. This version of NRLWahine doesn't involve Aotearoa Warriors and that's all good considering how the last Warriors wahine team barely had any Aotearoa players, while this isn't quite as stacked with Kiwi-NRLW funk as previous years.

There is a distinctly fresh vibe to the Kiwi-NRLWahine crew this year. A hearty crop of experienced troopers are joined by youngsters like Karli Hansen (Titans - Te Atatu), Mya Hill-Moana (Roosters - Huntly), Katelyn Vaha’akolo (Knights - Te Atatu) and Autumn-Rain Stephens-Daly (Knights - Rotorua). As always there are funky yarns about players starting rugby league a year or two ago and while this makes it tricky to credit junior clubs in grassroots Aotearoa, the quick ascension of these players is a credit to Aotearoa rugby league's grassroots.

Round tahi of NRLWahine goes down on Sunday with all three games played in Newcastle. First up with have Dragons vs Titans, then Roosters vs Broncos and finishing with Knights vs Eels. I'll break down the Kiwi-NRLW presence in each team prior to each round, so tap around this time each week throughout the competition.

Dragons vs Titans

Madison Bartlett (Richmond) starts on the wing for Dragons and she is one of Aotearoa's best outside backs. The Titans are new to NRLWahine but have been building towards this moment with Georgia Hale moving to Gold Coast to play locally alongside Crystal Tamarua (Richmond). Hale is named on the bench and provides utiltiy value having spent most of her NRLW career as a middle forward, also juggling halves/hooker. Tamarua isn't named in the wider Titans squad and that's likely due to injury.

The Titans have also named Kimiora Breayley-Nati (Manurewa) in the halves. Breayley-Nati is a Kiwi Ferns and NRLWahine veteran who has previously won the championship with Broncos, providing fabulous guidance for young half Karli Hansen (Te Atatu) who is on the extended bench for this game. I've noted how Aotearoa's Kiwi-NRL growing depth is evident in more Kiwis halves options and this is now flowing into Kiwi-NRLW as the Titans have a veteran half in Breayley-Nati as well as the fresh youngster in Hansen.

Roosters vs Broncos

Both Roosters Kiwi-NRLW players are named on the extended bench with Raecene McGregor (Sydney) providing halves depth and Mya Hill-Moana offering forwards depth. McGregor is another Kiwi Ferns halves option and seemed to have little Kiwi-NRLW buzz prior to the All Stars clash despite her experience in this competition. Now it's clear that McGregor is with Roosters, I'm curious to see how long it takes for her to crack the top-17 and Hill-Moana offers similar curiosity as a youngers.

Hill-Moana is from Waikato and impressed with Taniwharau Under 18 and then picked up a gig with Bulldogs Under 19s in New South Wales' Tarsha Gale Cup. This is lovely as it shows another Kiwi-NRLW pipeline with youngsters from Aotearoa moving into NRLWahine systems to speed up their development.

Broncos have Amber Hall (Richmond) and Lavinia Gould (Whakatane) in their squad, with Hall starting on an edge and Gould on the extended bench. Both have been with Broncos for a few years now and Hall is someone to keep tabs on as she's a powerful runner who quickly became a key figure for Broncos since leaving Auckland.

Knights vs Eels

This contest is all about the hefty Knights crew of Kiwi-NRLWahine. Big ups to Nita Maynard (Gisborne) with the Eels, although the Knights have bolstered their first NRLWahine squad with nine ladies from Aotearoa named in their squad of 23. Katelyn Vaha'akolo starts on the wing, Autumn-Rain Stephens-Daly starts in the halves, Krystal Rota (Manurewa) starts at hooker, Annetta Nu'uausala (Otara/Mangere East) and Charntay Poko (Papanui - Christchurch) starts as middle forward with Charlotte Scanlan (Richmond) on the bench. Maitua Feterika (Otahuhu), Ngatokotoru Arakua (Manurewa) and Kararaina Wira-Kohu (Manurewa/Papakura) feature on the extended bench.

I don't think it will be long until Feterika and Arakua force their way into the top-17 as they are both genuine Kiwi Ferns internationals, among the most powerful and dynamic players in the world. I'm not sure what role Scanlan will play off the bench - likely to roll through as a middle forward. Poko has played as a half for Aotearoa and this provides a funky Knights forward pack also featuring experienced troopers Rota and Nu'uausala. The Kiwi-NRLWahine vibe we want is for Feterika and Arakua, perhaps even Wira-Kohu to crack the top-17 and take over this Knights forward pack.

Vaha'akolo has quickly established herself as a slick winger in Aotearoa and now steps up to NRLWahine. Then we have Stephens-Daly chiming in as a young Kiwi-NRLW half along with Hansen, giving Aotearoa two halves starting this round (Breayley-Nati) and two halves waiting for their turn (McGregor/Hansen).

There is similar depth on display at hooker with Rota starting for Knights, Maynard starting for Eels and Gould in the Broncos squad.

To start the 2022 NRLWahine, here is how the 18 Kiwi-NRLW players named this week fit into one team...

Fullback: Autumn-Rain Stephens-Daly.

Wings: Madison Bartlett, Katelyn Vaha'akolo.

Centres: Maitua Feterika, Karli Hansen.

Halves: Raecene McGregor, Kimiora Breayley-Nati.

Middles: Annetta Nu'uausala, Amber Hall, Charntay Poko.

Edges: Ngatokotoru Arakua, Charlotte Scanlan.

Hooker: Krystal Rota.

Bench: Georgia Hale, Mya Hill-Moana, Kararaina Wira-Kohu, Nita Maynard.

18th Wahine: Lavinia Gould.

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Peace and love.