Brisbane Broncos hold a hearty Kiwi-NRL vibe and Christchurch's Jordan Riki continues to establish himself as a steady edge forward. Broncos have quietly assembled a fabulous pool of Kiwi-NRL youngsters and that started when they won the recruitment battle for Riki, creating a space for Riki to emerge as a the leader of this young Aotearoa Broncos pocket.

Riki is also the leading figure for Kiwi-NRL Broncos game time. Te Maire Martin is graced with fullback selection this week for his first game of the season, while Delouise Hoeter and TC Robati have made sporadic appearances this season. Riki has played five games (of six), playing 80 minutes in three of these games with 65mins in round tahi, plus a 20mins before coming off injured against Cowboys.

Hornby Panthers junior Riki has quickly become the most reliable Kiwi-NRL Bronco and at 22-years-old, Riki appears to be the bloke coach Kevin Walters wants at right edge. Broncos aren't cruising along calm waters though and while Kiwi-NRL lads have previously entered strong Broncos teams comfy with winning, Riki is finding his groove in a middling Broncos outfit.

Riki's NRL career has revolved around niggle. Riki made his debut in 2020 and that was icky for everyone, let alone Broncos acquainting themselves with NRL mediocrity. Riki showed his potential in his debut season before racking up 3 tries, 4 linebreaks, 7 offloads and 72m/game last year as Broncos went 6-12.

Five games into this season and Riki's vibe is murky like the depths of your local estuary. Murky isn't bad though because we know that Aotearoa's estuaries are magical Aotearoa arteries and this Kiwi-NRL Spotlight is all about curiosity. Riki has no tries, no linebreaks and no offloads this season while also averaging just 42m/game.

Riki has spent most of this season at right edge and the best thing for Riki is playing the same role, every week to stack up repetitions. This also provides insight as Riki has had 10+ receipts in just two games (10 and 13) which feels aligned with Kotoni Staggs lacking touches at stages this season. Even if Staggs is getting his touches, Broncos shifts to their right edge can often skip Riki to get Staggs those touches and that's a decent plan given Staggs' robust running.

Broncos have options and Riki's lack of attacking output is countered by his defensive output. Riki has made 30+ tackles in four games, only dipping below that mark for his 20-minute stint vs Cowboys. Riki made 50 tackles against Bulldogs in round rua, before making 34 and 35 tackles in his last two outings.

This defensive wrinkle is crucial as Staggs is tackling at 83.8 percent efficiency, has never tackled over 90 percent in five seasons and has three (of six) games with 5+ missed tackles this season. Package Staggs with Riki, simplify Riki's attack to provide more energy to his defence and to support Staggs.

Riki could feature in the Aotearoa Kiwis World Cup squad. I have Riki behind Kenny Bromwich, Isaiah Papali'i and Briton Nikora which is a nod to Aotearoa's depth. Sitili Tupouniua feels more likely to play for Tonga while the likes of Corey Harawira-Naera, Marata Niukore and Kelma Tuilagi are also factors in this yarn.

Below are this season's stats for these edge forward contenders. Riki's stats are most similar to Bromwich, although Bromwich has more Kiwi-NRL mana and many Melbourne Storm attacking plays down that left edge revolve around Bromwich. Bromwich doesn't have the stats like Isaiah Papali'i but his excellence is low key, underground mahi that needs to be observed.

Isaiah Papali'i

156m/game, 392pcm, 8 offloads, 1 try assist 26 tackle breaks, 206 tackles @ 92% efficiency.

Briton Nikora

83m/game, 153pcm, 7 offloads, 1 try assist6 tackle breaks, 181 tackles @ 91.4% efficiency

Kenny Bromwich

81m/game, 151pcm, 1 offload, 1 try assist, 1 tackle break, 155 tackles @ 91.2% efficiency.

Jordan Riki

42m/game, 72pcm, 2 tackle breaks, 160 tackles @ 92.5% efficiency.

Riki's intrigue fits more into that Bromwich mould as he won't jack up big numbers and bonkers performances like Papali'i, but watch Riki and you'll see a young bloke from Christchurch churning out tough mahi. Tough mahi that Broncos growth stems from and tough mahi that would benefit from a World Cup trip.

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