Victories for Gold Coast Titans and Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs haven't been too frequent recently and in both their wins from latest round of NRL footy, there were a few notable #KiwiNRL performances.
If you thought that Aotearoa Warriors would provide some level of steadiness in these shifting times, obviously you were wrong and thinking that the Warriors were all the way on the up after defeating the Dragons a week prior, well yeah, definitely wrong.
After defeating St George Illawara Dragons, Aotearoa Warriors were graced with the narrative that a better team would have given the Dragons hefty dismantling.
NRL footy is back and as funky as the footy was via the rule changes, we can't pretend like the big boppers didn't have any fun.
As bumbly and fumbly as St George Illawara Dragons were against Aotearoa Warriors, Ken Maumalo's desperate attempt to knock the ball out of Dragons winger Mikaele Ravalawa as he approached an open try-line was the most telling aspect of the Warriors win.
Whether you are a hearty, frothing Aotearoa Warriors fan or a kiwi sports fan sniffing around a splash of live sport, I'm not completely sure that the return of the Warriors against St George Illawara Dragons will fulfill your needs.
Brandon Smith and Siliva Havili will do battle off the bench in the #KiwiNRL monster that is Melbourne Storm vs Canberra Raiders, plus there is the sneaky selection of Erin Clark for Gold Coast Titans.
The past few days have seen more injuries, perhaps a loan player or two and a fresh Aussie middle forward eager to make an impact this season for Aotearoa Warriors as they wiggle towards an NRL re-start.
Before sliding on to preview the NRL's return through our #KiwiNRL lens, we must first take a look back at some of the best statistical #KiwiNRL efforts from the first two rounds.
“The thing that I want to do is make sure, if we can as an entire club work together, with those attitude improvements and a commitment like we've never seen before, the power will be outstanding. The power will be outstanding.”
Word on the webs is that Aotearoa Warriors have added another large-enough body to their middle forward stocks as the appear to have snapped up Cronulla Sharks forward Toby Rudolf.
Having recently stumbled across the RL Scout Youtube channel and an abundance of video highlights for a wide range of NRL prospects, I’m going to zone in on the #KiwiNRL homies.
On one side of the road we have dates and ideas for the NRL's return and on the other side of the road we have the fact that the NRL is proving themselves to be a strange ol' organistaion rooted in strange ol' Aussie ways.
The 2020 rugby league season marked a cheeky shift in how the junior pathways of Aotearoa Warriors were structured and as those changes were made during 2019, I had highlighted a fair amount of intrigue as to how things would play out this year.
The 2020 NRL season lasted two games, giving us a teeny weeny window into what the 2020 Aotearoa Warriors looked like.
In their first two NRL games of 2020, Aotearoa Warriors have not scored an actual try and have not made a single line break.
Like you, I've got no idea what the next few weeks are going to look like for Aotearoa Warriors on and off the field.
Mystery surrounds Aoteaora Warriors and the NRL as the NRL ponders doing the exact opposite to what most other sporting competitions are doing, yet there was absolutely no mystery in the Warriors performance vs Newcastle Knights.
There aren't any dramas in the first team list served up by Aotearoa Warriors coach Stephen Kearney, only intriguing moves to spice things up with David Fusitu'a and Kodi Nikorima sliding into different positions and Eliesa Katoa wiggling into the top-17.
Issac Luke’s starting for the Dragons, while Northland’s Caleb Aekins gets a fullback crack with Penrith Panthers and Jamayne Isaako is likely to benefit from some Broncos injuries.