Expect a hearty bounce back from the Kiwi-NRL Sea Eagles, while James Fisher-Harris comes up against a ruthless Eels forward pack.

The first round of NRL finals footy dished up plenty of Kiwi-NRL intrigue as every base was covered. There were dominant performances commanding plenty off attention, more subtle Kiwi-NRL contributions and some low key deep cuts that reflect the Kiwi-NRL funk.

Monster weekend of Kiwi-NRL finals footy coming up. We’ve got a breakdown of the Kiwi-NRL players and notes on match ups, key players and stats.

While all of Aotearoa wanted a 1-outs with anyone who disregards Tokoroa's Joseph Manu, Sydney Roosters dished out the 18th Kiwi-NRL debut as Moala Graham-Taufa was graced with a couple minutes of NRL footy.

Two teams have dominated the NRL for the past decade and while lots of flashy blokes have snapped up the headlines throughout this period, Melbourne Storm and Sydney Roosters have two hearty Aotearoa troopers leading their success in Jesse Bromwich and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves.

Like most NRL clubs, Manly Sea Eagles are bolstered by Kiwi-NRL players at all levels.

Newcastle Knights have named St Paul's College junior Jirah Momoisea to make his NRL debut this weekend, making Momoisea the 17th Kiwi-NRL debutant of 2021.

Add three more Kiwi-NRL debutants to the tally for 2021 now that Naufahu Whyte, Griffin Neame and Makahesi Makatoa all made their debuts over the weekend.

In covering Kiwi-NRL matters at the top end of NRL business and also the junior pipelines offered by every NRL club, a strong trend of SEQ emerging as a pivotal round-a-bout of Kiwi-NRL prospects quickly perked my antenna.

After 14 Kiwi-NRL players made their debuts last year, we now have eight already this season thanks to Falakiko Manu getting a crack at centre for the Bulldogs.