Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: Eelin' With Daejarn Asi
Daejarn Asi has had a chaotic Kiwi-NRL journey since his debut for Cowboys in 2020 and after impressing for NZ Warriors last season, the Aranui junior has back to back games as a starting half for Eels. Asi's mahi for Warriors commanded a Kiwi-NRL Spotlight after he out-performed Matt Burton in a Mt Smart win over Bulldogs and his first appearance for Eels saw Asi deliver that dose once again.
With Dylan Brown out of action due to off-field antics, Asi slotted in alongside Mitchell Moses. Eels were too good for Bulldogs and Moses was immense in picking apart Bulldogs forwards while also churning out long kicks. Asi played his role nicely and finished that game with two try assists and a linebreak.
Asi had three kicks for 73m against Bulldogs and Moses' selection for New South Wales gave Asi more scope as the dominant play-maker for Eels against Sea Eagles. Ryan Matterson joined Asi in the halves and this meant that Asi would be in charge for most of the kicking, elevating his previous mahi to 17 kicks for 479m. Asi showcased his full quiver of kicks in the win as he landed bombs and long kicks near the Sea Eagles try-line, as well as nifty grubbers that earned two repeat sets. There was a kick out on the full as a minor blip. For context, Matterson had three kicks for 43m.
Asi played the Brown role and then played the Moses in consecutive games, both of which were hefty wins for Eels. There was a slight improvement in Asi'is tackling as he went from 20 tackles @ 74% to 17 tackles @ 94% and he was a steady threat as a runner, where his footwork and size is tricky to handle.
All Asi yarns need to highlight his left-footed kicking game which is straight up better than some NRL halves playing every week. While Matterson is a forward with enough skill to plug a halves hole, Asi's best position is in the halves with the ability to cover outside back positions. This is evident in his journey through Cowboys and Warriors, as well as in NSW Cup for Eels this season.
Asi started the first three games at centre and hasn't played centre since. In the next nine games, Asi has played six at fullback and three in the halves for Eels NSW Cup. Asi had 400 kicking metres in a loss to Raiders as an example of his kicking ability and his 12 games in NSW Cup feature eight try assists.
In two games of NRL footy for Eels, Asi has the most kicking metres (276km) and running metres (83m) per game of his four seasons. 88.1% tackling is also a high marker for Asi in his career and with two try assists so far, Asi is chasing his five try assists in eight games for Warriors last season.
Most importantly, Asi is winning. Two wins from two games is already tied with his two wins from eight games last season and in 10 games for Cowboys across two seasons, Asi had just one win. These two wins feature Asi playing two different roles and the Christchurch product has helped Eels win when missing their first choice halves combination. The Brown situation is a Kiwi-NRL bummer, but Asi is taking his opportunity to balance things out.
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