Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: Leo Thompson vs Griffin Neame
Leo Thompson and Griffin Neame are two young middle forwards from regional Aotearoa who helped New Zealand Kiwis roll over Australia, now they line up against each other in the first round of NRL Finals. Thompson is from Hawke's Bay and Neame is from Greymouth on the West Coast, they also have different Kiwi-NRL recruitment journeys to Newcastle Knights and North Queensland Cowboys respectively.
Thompson was intially recruited by Canberra Raiders, although they didn't snap him up straight out of 1st 15 for Napier Boys High School. Leo and Tyrone Thompson had a year playing premier rugby for Marist St Pat's before Leo left for Australia, with a couple of years in Canberra before switching to Knights for the 2022 NRL season.
Neame was recruited by Cowboys while in Greymouth, which is slowly returning to its rugby league heartland status. Neame is a year younger than Thompson but he made his debut a year earlier which is balanced by Thompson quickly settling into a starting role for Knights as Neame's game time has primarily come off the bench.
Thompson averaged 10 more minutes per game this season than Neame and as a midfielder in rugby union, Thompson has the speed/agility as well as sneaky passing skills to earn lots of game time. Thompson does more mahi in more minutes than Neame, however Neame offers more powerful mahi and this impact is probably why he is deployed as a bench forward.
Despite Thompson play more minutes, Neame averages more metres per game than Thompson. This was also evident in how these lads performed for Aotearoa last year in the win over Australia. Thompson played twice as many minutes as Neame which produced more mahi and Neame was more explosive...
NZ Kiwis vs Australia
Leo Thompson: 33mins, 14 runs - 134m @ 9.5m/run, 13 tackles @ 81.2%
Griffin Neame: 15mins, 1 try, 5 runs - 63m @ 12.6m/run, 5 tackles @ 83.3%
Leo Thompson
Basics: 24yrs, 63 games (46 prop, 4 lock, 13 bench)
Per games this season: 49.2mins, 103.2m, 31.2 tackles
Winning: 46% in career, 50+ last two years
Griffin Neame
Basics: 23yrs, 67 games (9 prop, 58 bench)
Per games this season: 39.6mins, 109.7m, 24.7 tackles
Winning: 63% in career, 50+ last three years
Thompson offers immense value to Knights on his current contract and while no one knows exact NRL salaries, the reported figure is well below what a starting prop who averages just under 50mins/game could be earning. Thompson will soon cash in (contracted for 2025) and Knights appear to be making room for this in their salary cap. The fact that Thompson is playing above his apparent contract value highlights how swift and influential his rise has been for Knights.
Neame recently got a contract extension through to the end of 2026 and he is a long term prop option for Cowboys. This is amplified by his connection to Cowboys that stretches back a few years and Neame is a fantastic big bopper to have playing alongside a mahi man like Reuben Cotter.
Thompson and Neame are in the tier below NZ Kiwis middle forwards James Fisher-Harris, Joseph Tapine, Moses Leota and Nelson Asofa-Solomona. Any injuries, suspensions or quirky eligibility matters could see either Thompson or Neame earn a starting role for Aotearoa. If everyone from the team who defeated Australia last year is on deck, expect to see Thompson and Neame shining in their slightly different bench roles.
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