The third wave of New Zealand Warriors women signings has flowed down the river with Michaela Blyde, Tysha Ikenasio, Payton Takimoana, Kalyn Takitimu-Cook, Makayla Eli, Emily Curtain, Felila Kia, Lavinia Kitai, Lydia Turua-Quedley, Kaiyah Atai, Maarire Puketapu and Danii Gray locked in for the women Warriors return to NRLW.

2025 New Zealand Women Warriors Signings Tracker: First Wave

2025 New Zealand Women Warriors Signings Tracker: Second Wave

Here are the basics for the third wave announced this week...

Danii Gray: Mangere East - halves (development)

Kaiya Atai: Richmond - forwards

Lydia Turua-Quedley: Ponsonby - halves

Lavinia Kitai: middle forward

Maarire Puketapu: Te Aroha - forward

Felila Kia: edge forward

Emily Curtain: halves

Michaela Blyde: Clifton - halves

Tysha Ikenasio: Richmond - outside backs

Payton Takimoana: Mt Maunganui - outside backs

Kalyn Takitimu-Cook: Manukura/Richmond - outside backs

Makayla Eli: Manurewa - edge forward/halves

These signings bring together a few storylines that need to be observed before rolling forward...

NZ Warriors are not doing anything unique in recruiting talent from rugby union. Most NRLW teams have wahine who played Black Ferns/Black Ferns Sevens/Super Rugby Aupiki/Farah Palmer Cup signed for 2025 and NZW are merely fitting into the trend of NRLW taking over women's rugby union in Aotearoa.

This is evident in former Black Fern Martha Mataele joining Parramatta Eels for next season. Blyde and Ikenasio aren't blazing new trails in moving from Black Ferns Sevens to NRLW. They join Gayle Broughton (Broncos - Stacey Waaka is unsigned for 2025), Tyla King (Dragons) and Tenika Willison (Knights) who have already made that switch. Tafito Lafaele was a Black Fern two years ago, now she has re-signed with Broncos for another season of NRLW.

A conservative estimate is at least half of the NRLWahine signed for 2025 played rugby union in Aotearoa at some level before joining NRLW. This is the nature of women's sport as less professional opportunities mean more chances to build multi-sport skills and more life experience than men.

NZW aren't doing anything different. As keen rugby league fans, we should celebrate how NRLW is taking players from all levels of rugby union and providing more professional opportunities. Rugby union folk in Aotearoa are too deep in their own matters to see what is happening, but this is a major shift in the balance of power for sports in New Zealand.

Another storyline is how coach Ronald Griffiths and the NZWW crew are able to recruit players from Australia. This is aligned with the men's silo at NZW who have recruited the likes of Mitchell Barnett, Kurt Capewell and Luke Metcalf. Add in younger Aussies such as Luke Hanson, Jett Cleary and Sam Healey who have embraced moves to Mt Smart.

Coach Griffiths has used connections from his time coaching in Australia to recruit Aussies like Emmanita Paki and Kia, who were around the Newcastle Knights team who won back to back NRLW championships with Griffiths as coach. Curtain is similar to Metcalf/Hanson/Cleary as she is a 23-year-old half who has progressed through rugby league systems in Australia.

Coach Griffiths specifically mentioned Curtain's "tough defensive mindset coupled with her game management" which are strengths that were brewed in Australia's more competitive junior landscape. Curtian, Paki and Kia are joined by Kitai as the only women Warriors who didn't play some kind of junior footy in Aotearoa, with Kitai leaving Auckland at a young age while the other three are from Australia.

Young wahine from Aotearoa like Eli, Puketapu, Turua-Quedley, Tauhalaliku and Gray all left Aotearoa to pursue rugby league in Australia. Eli and Tauhalaliku played for the same Manly Sea Eagles team in the NSW Women's Premiership this year for example. There is a strong group of experienced NRLWahine who have played for Kiwi Ferns and then the wahine recruited from rugby union all come from varying degrees of high performance environments.

This brings together a wide background of skills, experience, professionalism and life lessons that should flow into performance for NZWW next season. All of that then sits under the umbrella of coach Griffiths being an indigenous leader who appears to have a strong understanding of Aotearoa's cultural values and is building a squad of powerful wahine.

Without getting too political, this is a fascinating time of cultural interactions in Aotearoa. Two indigenous cultures feature prominently in the NZWW squad along with a comprehensive mix of polynesian elements and this NZWW group primed to step up as leaders for their communities.

Here is an attempt at breaking down the current roster by position brackets which includes a 'Funky Forward' role that is a combination of utility/skill...

Outside Backs

Apii Nicholls, Lavinia Tauhalaliku, Emmanita Paki, Shakira Baker, Tysha Ikenasio, Payton Takimoana, Kalyn Takitimu-Cook

Halves

Emily Curtain, Michaela Blyde, Lydia Turua-Quedley, Tyra Wetere, Danii Gray

Hookers

Capri Paekau

Middle Forwards

Mya Hill-Moana, Harata Butler, Laishon Albert-Jones, Matekino Gray, Metanoia Fotu-Moala, Lavinia Kitai, Felila Kia

Funky Forwards

Makayla Eli, Maarire Puketapu, Kaiyah Atai

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