Aotearoa Warriors Diary: Taking Stock Of A Golden Start To Winter
The last two wins for New Zealand Warriors serve as an intriguing checkpoint for the 'Two Andys' era and they were no fluke, instead they were the result of an organisation that is sizzling like some Aotearoa herbs with a pair of knives. Look closely and you will find two completely different styles of footy between the wins over Panthers and Dolphins, further amplifying how impressive these wins were.
Te Maire Martin is a key indicator here. The senior NRL lad from Taharoa (big up Taine Tuaupiki and Xavier Willison) played in both wins, which aside from Paul Roache's 10 minute stint vs Dolphins, makes him the only player in the spine to roll through both wins. Three different hookers were used for NZW in these two wins, two different fullbacks were used and Martin had a different halves partner in both outings.
vs Panthers
Te Maire Martin: 10 runs - 69m, 3 try assists, 17 kicks - 599m
Charnze Nicol-Klokstad: 15 runs - 136m, 1 try assist, 3 offloads
vs Dolphins
Te Maire Martin: 18 runs - 98m, 1 try, 14 kicks - 312m
Chanel Harris-Tavita: 7 runs - 75m, 1 try, 1 offload, 9 kicks - 298m
Take away the stats and ponder how Nicoll-Klokstad and Harris-Tavita play their footy. Nicoll-Klokstad added a dynamic running presence to the halves against Dolphins. The effort, footwork and power that make him a sneaky awesome fullback slotted in nicely alongside Martin. Harris-Tavita has grown up in the halves and this offers a wider skillset that was evident against Dolphins. Subtle touches, running enough and a slick left-footed kicking game also looked lovely alongside Martin.
There were other changes as well. Edward Kosi, Moala Graham-Taufa, Marata Niukore and Freddy Lussick joined Harris-Tavita in stepping in for the win over Panthers. With Lussick and Harris-Tavita competing for top-17 spots in a full strength crew, Niukoe is the only certified top-17 lad here and this means NZW went deeper into their depth to grab the win over Dolphins.
Another sign of the depth is in contrast to the different mahi delivered in the halves. Watene-Zelezniak offered the same fullback output as Tuaupiki and both hovered around Nicoll-Klokstad's exception mahi, while Lussick and Roche also churned out similar performances at hooker.
Tuaupiki vs Panthers
1 try, 23 runs - 198m @ 8.6m/run, 2 linebreaks, 3 tackle breaks, 2 tackles @ 50%
Watene-Zelezniak vs Dolphins
1 try, 22 runs - 205m @ 9.3m/run, 1 linebreak, 5 tackle breaks, 2 offloads, 1 tackle @ 33%
Roache vs Panthers
68mins, 3 runs - 20m @ 6.6m/run, 37 tackles @ 92.5%
Lussick vs Dolphins
70mins, 3 runs - 33m @ 11m/run, 1 try assist, 45 tackles @ 97.8%
There are differences there, because there were lots of differences in the two wins. The general similarities are informative in telling us about how this NZW squad steps up to play a role.
One last pocket that offers insight into the NZW vibe here is Jacob Laban. Wellington's best emerging rugby league talent played 52 and 30mins in these two wins, filling both edge forward spots and he even plugged a hole at centre vs Panthers. Laban had nine runs across both games and 10 receipts, both of which are low for such an enticing runner of the footy. Instead of attacking funk, Laban had 53 tackles across both wins with two missed tackles and this is an impressive wrinkle that highlights the mana required to play for NZW.
22 players were used across these two wins, many of whom sit outside the top-17. NZW footy is bigger than any individual, no matter what headlines you see from mainstream media. When a team battles adversity to win games and does so with so many different players involved, something bigger is brewing. NZW have established an undeniable culture and the mana is palpable, you can feel it.
That culture has seen Mitchell Barnett earn State of Origin squad selection for New South Wales. Barnett has played 70+ minutes in four consecutive games, hitting 73+ minutes in these two wins. Some may assume that this should be the case given that Barnett started at edge forward, however Barnett has played middle and edge in both these wins, stepping up to fill a leadership void.
It's not just Barnett. Jackson Ford played through the middle against Dolphins, allowing Barnett, Niukore and Laban to spend time on the edges. Dylan Walker has churned out 73mins and 68mins as a middle forward, which means that Walker is 2-0 in games when he's played 60+ minutes and 0-5 in games he's had less than 60mins this season. Walker, Barnett, Ford and Marcelo Montoya moved from Australia to Aotearoa and are better for the move. This thread includes lads like Lussick and Wayde Egan, as well as the four young Aussie halves already shining in the NZW system (Luke Hanson, Jesse Soric, Tallan Egan, Jack Thompson).
Martin, Watene-Zelezniak, Bunty Afoa and Jazz Tevaga have elevated their performances and leadership as well. Afoa and Tevaga deserve a salute. Both have had season-highs for minutes in these wins. Afoa hit 30+ minutes for the first time this season, doing it two weeks in a row. Tevaga hit 40+ minutes for the first time this season and he's also done it two weeks in a row.
Tevaga has nine tackle breaks in the two wins and his spinny move with quick feet offers a different tackling challenge through the middle. Afoa whipped Mt Smart into a frenzy with his steamroller runs vs Dolphins (84m and 36 post contact metres) but he also excelled in a different role vs Panthers (18m and 7pcm). Afoa made 31 tackles @ 100% vs Panthers and as his running increased, he settled for 19 tackles @ 86% vs Dolphins.
What Afoa offers NZW seems simple with how he carts the footy up. He doesn't have an offload during the Two Andys era and his only seasons below 60m/game are these two years post-pandemic. Afoa barely misses a tackle though and he had three consecutive games prior to the Dolphins win with no missed tackles, including the effort vs Panthers. Afoa and other NZW troopers mentioned in the paragraphs above are willing to do anything for the team, while doing it at the highest level they can.
The funkiest part of these two wins for NZW is that they are the tip of the iceberg. NZW are the biggest sporting franchise in Aotearoa and the only sports teams who are bigger brands (more buzz, sponsorships etc) are national teams like All Blacks and Blackcaps. Last season NZW laid down exciting foundations by consistently hitting the 20,000 crowd marker at Mt Smart as well as bumper crowds in Christchurch, Napier and Hamilton.
NZW peaked with crowds of 24,112 vs Sea Eagles, 25,095 vs Dragons and 26,083 vs Knights to finish last season. Those crowds are bigger than most Super Rugby games in Aotearoa and NZW have backed it up with crowds over 23,000 in every game at Mt Smart this season. Super Rugby crowds rarely hit 25,000 but it takes a special circumstance for that and most Super Rugby games get less than 20,000.
Take whatever thoughts about the chaos of rugby union in Aotearoa and ponder how NZW have blown away every Super Rugby franchise in Aotearoa. Crazier crowds, more buzz and a diverse community that is heavily engaged with all things NZW. NZW are the biggest ticket in Aotearoa sport and we are now approaching the second year in the row of this being the case.
Everything to this point of this yarn involves the top-tier. Big mahi and big business. When winding through the estuaries of Aotearoa, the rivers and oceans that calm us all down, you will see and feel how currents below the surface move water. Whether it's a rip in the surf, or the currents that carve out channels of your local awa, movement below the surface is what moves the water.
NZW won the New South Wales Rugby League Under 17 Harold Matthews Cup competition. That involves 15 teams in NSW as well as a Melbourne Storm team, plus the NZW team ... who are the best. NZW finished sixth in the regular season and earned a finals spot by going on winning run that coincided with the recruitment of Jack Thompson from Newcastle Knights. That winning run extended into the finals and the nugget about Thompson shouldn't take anything away from the U17 talent from Aotearoa that made up the bulk of this championship squad.
Recruiting Thompson is relevant because it's an example of the power that NZW have as they build out their junior pipeline under the guidance of Andrew McFadden. NZW have three other young halves from Australia and Jett Cleary will shift to Mt Smart next season. Young Aussies want to move to Aotearoa and develop in the NZW system.
Over the past month, youngsters have flooded through to the NZW NSW Cup team and many of the Under 19 SG Ball squad have moved up to play Under 21 Jersey Flegg. Over the past few weeks, half of the NSW Cup team have been U21 lads which features a few U19 lads who are rolling through consistent reserve grade footy. Meanwhile, NZW are undefeated against Penrith Panthers in NRL, NSW Cup and Jersey Flegg this season.
That win over Panthers at Magic Round was nice, but NZW have had a draw and a win over Panthers in NSW Cup as well as a Jersey Flegg win. Considering everything that has been typed in this deep dive, it feels notable that NZW are also performing well against the benchmark for the best development system in the NRL.
NZW have depth that didn't feature in the two wins over Panthers and Dolphins. Zyon Maiu'u was 18th lad in both wins, Demitric Sifakula recently returned from injury and Leka Halasima is still one of the best emerging talents in Aotearoa and Australia. Tanner Stowers-Smith is slowly building into a James Fisher-Harris/Leo Thompson clone and Eddie Ieremia will approach an NRL debut soon as well.
For a few games this season the NSW Cup spine has been full of U21 lads. Motu Pasikala has played fullback with Caleb Laiman and Hanson in the halves, while Makaia Tafua and Jacob Auloa share dummy half mahi. Pasikala and Auloa are U19s to further hammer down this point. For each NZW junior you get excited about, just know that there are two more in that position who have similar upside.
As we venture deeper into winter, NZW have established the development pipeline that everyone wanted for decades. There are strong indicators that NZW are operating at the highest level in the NRL with top-tier development, consistently awesome crowds and an organisational culture that has generated wins under adversity. NZW need to keep building throughout the season but now is a time for gratitude and the overwhelming emotion from the past few weeks has been pride.
This pride isn't just about getting some NRL wins when battling all sorts of niggly situations. NZW have bounced back from the pandemic era with style, taking over the Aotearoa sporting landscape and making a dent in how Australia controls rugby league. Bask in the glow of Mt Smart during the bye week, smoking on pride and sipping on gratitude.
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