As the majority of the recent Aotearoa Kiwis team is preparing to play finals footy, there are a bunch of funky match ups and elite Kiwi-NRL mahi to enjoy. Kieran Foran is the only player from the team that played Tonga in the mid-season Test missing in finals footy, well Joseph Manu too but ... but Tokoroa's finest deserves the Test/finals crossover love.

Around this time last year, Manu got whacked by Latrell Mitchell and his season was wrapped up ahead of finals. Then Manu went bonkers on Aotearoa turf vs Tonga and now after another epic season Manu is forced to recuperate. Roosters have premium rejuvenation systems and Manu seems to be a top-tier professional which could lead to swift recovery. Roosters and Kiwis are obviously better with Manu, so send some mana to Manu.

Panthers

James Fisher-Harris: Whangarei Marist

Moses Leota: Auckland

Scott Sorenson: Sydney

A key theme of Kiwi-NRL mahi is aggressive, skillful, ruthless forwards. Every team except Rabbitohs has that combo and as impressive as that is, Panthers are the best. Panthers dominate opposition forward packs nearly every week and James Fisher-Harris is the leader of their intent. Isaah Yeo controls the distribution flow, while Fisher-Harris is pure Hokianga mana. There are new layers to Panthers now with Moses Leota elevating his footy to command Kiwis selection alongside Scott Sorenson.

How this trio perform against an uber-agro Eels forward pack will be fun to watch. Fisher-Harris hovers around 50 minutes and Leota usually plays around 40mins, making this something that Kiwi-NRL folk should focus on. Eels Kiwi-NRL middle funk comes in Makahesi Makatoa and Marata Niukore, both of whom are named to come off the bench. Their minutes will cross over with each other to amplify the fun otherwise there will always be a Kiwi-NRL forward rumbling.

Panthers also flexed their depth last week in Jersey Flegg, NSW Cup and NRL. This saw William Fakatoumafi (Otahuhu) and Daeon Amituanai (Whiti Te Ra) play NSW Cup together, after Amitunanai had made that leap earlier in the season. Preston Riki (Rawene) has been playing NSW Cup all season but didn't benefit from the depth flex; Riki is named in NSW Cup, Fakatoumafi, Amituanai and Ilai Tuia (Randwick) are named in Flegg.

There was a pocket a few years ago without many Kiwi-NRL juniors coming through Panthers junior ranks and this flipped recently as Panthers snared Fakatoumafi, Amituanai and Riki from Warriors. Tuia also popped up on the radar this season and whether you are supporting Panthers or not, their Kiwi-NRL mahi is top notch.

Eels

Dylan Brown: Hikurangi Stags

Isaiah Papali'i: Te Atatu Roosters

Makahesi Makatoa: Marist Dragons

Marata Niukore: Mangere East Hawks

(Bailey Simonsson, Ofahiki Ogden)

Eels have been one of my favourite Kiwi-NRL pockets in recent seasons as they combine nifty recruitment and supreme development to build winning players, also boosting their value. Whatever estimate you have for the contract value of Isaiah Papali'i and Marata Niukore next season, it's far more than their first deals signed for Eels. Scouting Dylan Brown was a fantastic Kiwi-NRL move and he has developed into starting Kiwis half through the Eels system.

How else can this be sliced? Well, Makahesi Makatoa couldn't get out of NSW Cup and went to second tier footy in England with Featherstone Rovers before joining Eels. Makatoa played five games last year and has played 22 games this season, usually joining Niukore to continue Eels dominance through the middle.

All four of the Eels Kiwi-NRL crew named serve as evidence of the Eels system's success. Brown is likely to play opposite Nathan Cleary and that alone will be fun viewing. Don't overlook Papali'i as he won the Dally M Second Rower of the Year last season and is just as good this season. Niukore is a funky wrinkle to observe as his energy is crucial through the middle and Niukore did a fine job at centre for Aotearoa earlier this year.

Storm

Jahrome Hughes: Harbour City Eagles

Jesse Bromwich: Manurewa Marlins

Nelson Asofa-Solomona: Upper Hutt Tigers

Kenny Bromwich: Manurewa Marlins

Brandon Smith: Waiheke Island Rams

Enjoy this era of Storm Kiwi-NRL vibes folks. Next season both Bromwich brothers will join Redcliffe and Brandon Smith is off to Roosters, leaving the Wellington duo to hold things down. The tinkering with Cameron Munster between half and fullback ensures that Jahrome Hughes' mahi will be crucial at halfback. Hughes is a constant running threat and his other skills shine on the back of his running ability (very similar to Brown), while I'm curious about Hughes' organisation and control.

There are trendier edge forwards than Kenny Bromwich and Felise Kaufusi, but these two have been among the best for a while now. Kenny will operate on the left edge where he either plays a distribution role in executing plays down that edge, or Kenny runs decoys. Kenny will run it straight and grind through rugged mahi but the subtlety of his attacking touches is crucial in setting up Justin Olam and Munster for specific plays.

Storm have the Kiwi-NRL trinity of middle forwards and as Smith will probably snap up the starting hooker role with Roosters, enjoy his middle forward play while it lasts. Opposition forwards have to deal with Smith's speed and power, Nelson Asofa-Solomona's size and skill as well as Jesse Bromwich's late footwork. Three different bodies and skillsets, same intensity.

In his first 13 games of the season, Asofa-Solomona played 50+ minutes just once. Asofa-Solomona has since played 50+ minutes in eight of his next nine games which includes the brief stint as an edge forward. More game time means more runs and tackles, leading to more visible mahi and more attention on what Asofa-Solomona does; bully blokes.

This can also lead to more fatigue and coach Craig Bellamy can tweak these rotations. J-Bromwich reliably offers 45-50mins and his defensive grappling will be important for Storm against the Raiders forward pack. Coach Bellamy has Smith that he can throw into the game to create chaos and this may decide the contest.

Raiders

Matthew Timoko: Mt Wellington Warriors

Joseph Tapine: Harbour City Eagles

Corey Harawira-Naera: Otaua Valley Warriors

(Ata Mariota, Peter Hola, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad)

If you need a team to rally behind for finals round tahi, you can't go wrong with the presence of Matthew Timoko and Joseph Tapine in an underdog Raiders team. Timoko played two games in his first season, then nine games last season before settling into a starting role to play 24 games this season. Timoko is a 22-year-old centre who has averaged 100+ running metres and tackled above 87% in each of his first three seasons, now pushing for Aotearoa Kiwis World Cup selection. Timoko will line up against Olam and that battle will be fabulous.

Tapine has been an elite talent since he was scouted by Knights, immediately flexing his ability in two seasons with Knights before moving to Raiders where he has now played seven seasons. Tapine established himself as an Aotearoa Kiwis forward in this time and deep finals runs for Raiders have featured strong contributions from Tapine. That made Tapine one of the best low key middle forwards. Now Tapine has blossomed into the 'best middle forward' conversation.

Tapine has gathered over 1,000 post contact metres in a season twice. First was 2020 (1,042pcm) and then this season he blew that away with 1,596pcm.

2020 was Tapine's first season averaging over 100m per game with 125m, then he backed it up with 120m last season. Tapine averages 160m/game this season.

Tapine passed 20+ offloads in a season for the first time in 2020 with 34 offloads, followed by 24 offloads last season. Tapine has 42 offloads this season.

Expect Tapine to play over 50mins and Raiders will need him to be busting tackles to break down Storm defence. Corey Harawira-Naera will come off the bench and after an impressive outing on the Raiders right edge last week, Harawira-Naera provides edge cover as well as impact through the middle. Raiders will need some kind of spice to deal with Storm's forward depth and Harawira-Naera will add energy to their forward pack.

Sharks

Ronaldo Mulitalo: Ellerslie Eagles

Briton Nikora: Tauranga

Braden Hamlin-Uele: Glenora Bears

Otara's Ronaldo Mulitalo is the best winger in the world. That's a simmering Kiwi-NRL wrinkle I have been pondering and after Mulitalo showcased his mana for Aotearoa Kiwis this year, he should be celebrated by Kiwi-NRL folk. Not only is Mulitalo an Otara hero, he is a leader and wants to help anyone who needs it. After three solid years as a Sharks winger, Mulitalo has registered the most games played (22) and tries scored (16) of his career as well as taking his 121m/game last season up to 144m/game this season.

Briton Nikora and Braden Hamlin-Uele are high quality forwards. Nikora is fantastic on and edge with his running ability matched by aggression, fresh off three consecutive try-scoring games. Nikora came off the bench for Aotearoa earlier this year which highlights his value as he demanded selection despite not starting as an edge forward.

Hamlin-Uele played for Aotearoa prior to the pandemic and this is an enticing juncture for the middle forward. Hamlin-Uele's size and mobility make him tricky to slow down through the middle, although Sharks have tinkered with the middle forwards all season and Hamlin-Uele hasn't found consistency in his mahi. Hamlin-Uele played over 40mins in just two of his first 12 games, then starting and playing 40+ minutes in the last three games. Now Hamlin-Uele dips back to the bench for finals footy.

Cowboys

Peta Hiku: Manurewa Marlins

Jason Taumalolo: Papakura/Otahuhu

Griffin Neame: Suburbs Rugby Leauge Greymouth

There is only so much value one can place on a bench forward, but my Kiwi-NRL bias leads me to celebrate Griffin Neame as kinda important coming off the bench. Neame has played 21 games this season as a bench forward and whether it's the impact of his tackles or his efficiency running the footy, Neame often bullies opposition bench forwards. This presents a match up with Hamlin-Uele as they will likely be on the field together and for Cowboys to defeat Sharks, they will need to dominate through the middle when Jason Taumalolo is off the field - Neame's time to shine.

Peta Hiku has found a groove with Cowboys and Hiku's 17 wins for Cowboys this season is the most of his career. Now Hiku will probably line up against Siosifa Talakai and Talakai didn't play in the only Cowboys vs Sharks game this season, meaning there is nothing to prepare us for this battle. Hiku will rip in and Cowboys will have plans to help their edge defenders, while Talakai will also need to deal with Hiku's sneaky footwork and passing.

Roosters

Jared Waerea-Hargreaves: Rotorua

Siosiua Taukeiaho: Otara Scorpions

(Siua Wong)

No Manu or Sitili Tupouniua (Marist) for Roosters makes this less funky than it could be, although Waerea-Hargreaves' mana and a resurgent Siosiua Taukeiaho make up for some of that. Some of Waerea-Hargreaves' best footy has been played in recent seasons and very few players can physically own an NRL game like the Rotorua veteran, so expect him to run it straight as hard as possible.

Never forget that Taukeiaho joined Roosters as a centre, dabbling in edge forward duties before he emerged as one of the best middle forwards in the world. This season hasn't been as productive as Taukeiaho's peak but he is near his agile best and apart from a blowout win over Dragons (11mins), Taukeiaho's recent footy features 45+ minutes against Raiders (80mins), Storm (twice), Eels, Panthers and Rabbitohs.

Rabbitohs

Kodi Nikorima: Christchurch/Manawatu

Siliva Havili: Manurewa Marlins

(Jaxson Paulo)

Rabbitohs have Kodi Nikorima and Siliva Havili on their bench with Nikorima likely to cover dummy half duties, while Havili offers middle forward grunt. Havili has been a low key benefactor of the smaller middle forward example set by the Waiheke Ram and Storm, while Havili has also stepped in to absorb the loss of starting hooker Damien Cook.

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