Aotearoa Warriors Diary: Learning From The Addin Fonua-Blake Situation
Thankfully, the Addin Fonua-Blake wanting out of NZ Warriors saga was resolved, for the 2024 NRL season at least. Having dipped away from Manly Sea Eagles thanks to ol' mate 'compassionate grounds' there was a dash of James Harden in Fonua-Blake then rolling out the same ploy to depart NZ Warriors.
NZ Warriors were in a tricky spot and probably laid that out to Fonua-Blake to secure his services for next season at least. There is no player swap deal that makes sense in the current market and the theme of this yarn, along with the Josh Curran departure, is the delightful junior pipeline, so why would NZ Warriors want multiple players in return for Fonua-Blake? That would only clog their top-30 group and there aren't many emerging Aussies who are on the same level as the NZW juniors.
The hole left by Fonua-Blake's hefty salary could be of use to NZW. Signing a player on the rough $1milly mark in November for the next season is not realistic though. Despite the media's thirst for NRL free agency content, all those headlines are about players being available for 2025. Although, there are very few rules in the NRL player market and anything is possible.
Ultimately, there is no incentive for NZW to release Fonua-Blake. There is no suitable compensation apart from the karma boost from granting Fonua-Blake compassion. Compromise was the best solution and after 24 hours of NZW trauma being absorbed by the fandom, compromise appears to have been the result.
Like the Curran situation, this is a learning opportunity about what NZW are up to under the two Andys (Webster and McFadden). An additional learning nugget could be the investment from ownership. It is highly likely that ownership was involved in compromising with Fonua-Blake and your imagination can fill those gaps. Folks weren't happy with ownership in recent years and yet NZW owners dished out lots of money to keep NZW afloat while based in Australia, then they invested in two more juniors teams for a total of three age-group teams below NSW Cup. NZW owners spend money and that's all fans should care about.
Unlike the Curran situation, Fonua-Blake plays a major role in the NZW team. Curran played limited minutes off the bench, Fonua-Blake roughly offers 60mins/18 runs - 180m @ 10m/run every game. Replacing Curran is easily done by developing youngsters from within and while the theme of this summer is highlighting a strong crop of NZW youngsters, even I can't argue that they are capable of plugging the Fonua-Blake hole
We can continue to learn about the NZW system through this situation though. First, losing Fonua-Blake would not be detrimental to NZW making finals footy in 2024. From the moment that the two Andys took over late last year, NZW have built a system across their wider NRL squad that contributed to their success this year. Players improved last summer, youngsters commanded opportunities through their mahi and in the first season using Webster's footy style, NZW were a top-four team.
Fonua-Blake's really, really good. NZW are also really good and doing lovely things across the entire club. To assume that NZW success depends on one individual is overlooking the upward trend of the entire organisation. It's always mentioned that NZW need another middle forward and yet across all positions, NZW ooze depth that most NRL teams envy.
Ponder how Bunty Afoa and Tom Ale didn't play finals footy. Both dropped out of the top-17 late in the season and had a few appearances when top-17 lads were unavailable. Coach Webster either wanted smaller, more mobile forwards or Afoa and Ale weren't quite doing what was required. Afoa did play 21 games though and Ale rolled through 19 games.
Afoa should benefit the most from another summer under Webster, while Ale is 24-years-old and steadily maturing. Both are powerful runners who tackle over 95%. Afoa is more of a run-it-straight prop while Ale is smaller with better footwork. They both lack crisp passing which is crucial for NZW attacking shape and this could be a major development wrinkle for them this summer.
The youngsters rising into the NRL mixer have featured many times on The Niche Cache. NZW have multiple youngsters who can cover Curran's limited minutes and folks should expect one, maybe two of the young middle forwards to find steady minutes on the bench or debut next season. Demitric Sifakula has been mentioned many times because of his middle/edge versatility and he is the most likely youngster to find a bench spot for 20-30mins next season.
Zyon Maiu'u is the most likely to debut next season of the young forwards and the moment he runs into an opposition defensive line at Mt Smart, fans will love Maiu'u. This lad is big, mobile and aggressive. All NZW youngsters have a thread of aggression which can't be overlooked; Sifakula and Ali Leiataua looked comfy with NRL physicality, Maiu'u is a monster.
Isaiah Vagana is the biggest of the young middle forwards, who often started alongside Maiu'u in NSW Cup. Maiu'u played 26 games of NSW Cup this year with 40+ minutes in 12 games, while Vagana played 24 games with 40+ minutes in 13 games. They earned those opportunities through their summer mahi and another summer of NRL pre-season awaits.
While Selumiela (Leka) Halasima and Tanner Stowers-Smith are unlikely to debut next season, they serve as indicators of the talent on offer in the NZW pipeline. After starting the year in Under 19 SG Ball they soon transitioned into NSW Cup vs fringe NRL players. Halasima played 18 games with a bonkers 80 minutes in 10 games, while Stowers-Smith played 13 games with six games of 40+ minutes.
None of these youngsters can combine to plug a Fonua-Blake hole. The NZW youngsters will command game time next season though and after years of folks moaning about NZW losing their juniors or a lack of talented youngsters, NZW now have a production line of talent being developed for NRL. This is amplified by the two Andys because they are building a system that has already earned AWD trust.
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Peace and love.