Metaphorical Tidal Wave
Metaphorical Tidal Wave
Sneaky NZ Warriors Finals Push, Flying Kiwis Transfer Season & More NBL Takeover-ing
Podcast
TNC Variety Show - Episode 27
Myth-Making Stage (Tokyo 2020 Olympics)
Reading Menu
How Lydia Ko, Valerie Adams, Lisa Carrington and Rugby Sevens Wahine Took over Tokyo Olympics (Olympics)
Aotearoa Warriors Dairy: Viliami Vailea Debut Tells The Junior Pathway Story (NRL)
The Olympics Are Done, Now Prepare For Flying Kiwis Transfer Season (Football)
It’s Happened Again: Steven Adams Has Been Traded To The Memphis Grizzlies (NBA)
2021 T20 World Cup: Building Towards The Building Towards Phase (Cricket)
27fm Album Jukebox – July 2021 (Music)
Scotty’s Word
Sneaky NZ Warriors finals push…
There haven’t been too many times when I’ve thought ‘damn that NZ Warriors forward pack is ruthless’ until now. Defeating Cronulla Sharks 18-16 didn’t exactly come easy for the Warriors and they are still stuck in that fringe top-eight spot that they have always existed in (via the curse), however there were some fun signs of a team that could somehow push for finals contention.
That starts with Addin Fonua-Blake and Matt Lodge in the middle. Here are their stats from the weekend…
Fonua-Blake: 55mins, 17 runs - 222m @ 13.05m/run, 1 linebreak, 2 tackle busts, 2 offloads, 19 tackles @ 95%.
Lodge: 52mins, 18 runs - 139m @ 7.72m/run, 4 tackle busts, 6 offloads, 23 tackles @ 92%.
It’s clear that these two have been given the leadership duties with Roger Tuivasa-Sheck departing and while both have prickly backgrounds, both appear engaged in their leadership duties. Obviously they’re also engaged in their mahi through the middle and those Fonua-Blake numbers are bonkers, while Lodge balanced out his lower metres/run with more offloads.
Josh Curran: 80mins, 16 runs - 156m @ 9.75m/run, 2 linebreak assists, 6 tackle busts, 4 offloads, 42 tackles @ 91.3%.
Curran has been an interesting character since arriving at the Warriors. Prior to this season, I didn’t really see anything too special about Curran and then Nathan Brown started to express his love for Curran and his footy talents. Curran couldn’t quite put it all together though and his effort against the Sharks - being involved in nearly everything - definitely caught the eye.
Things were shaken up a bit when Viliami Vailea left the field after 52mins, bumping Euan Aitken out from edge forward to centre. With Aitken at centre, the plan for Warriors footy seems fairly obvious as all these blokes are super mobile without losing any oomph. Even the oomph from Fonua-Blake comes with mobility and nimble feet which is nicely suited to NRL footy in 2021.
I find all of this interesting because there is some kind of blueprint for success here. We all know that I reckon the Warriors are cursed and that the club is exactly where they have been for most of their cursed existence at this stage of the season, yet the mere presence of a hostile forward pack is encouraging.
Vailea was building into his work nicely as well prior to leaving the field and I’d love to see Vailea and Rocco Berry as a centre pairing. Berry feels like a better defender (92.4%) and while he’s an easy mover, his ability to chop down opponents as a centre stood out to me - “another good tackle by Berry”. Vailea is tackling @ 78.1% through his first 1.5 games and was a constant threat running the footy, even poking through the defensive line during yardage carries (13 runs - 122m @ 9.38m/run).
These kids are big too…
Vailea: 18yrs, 185cm, 98kg.
Berry: 20yrs, 191cm, 95kg.
This is where we get into the bridge to next season idea. Documenting NZ Warriors junior pipelines has me encouraged about the type of prospects coming through the club which when combined with the re-jigging of the roster, could prove to be fruitful next season and beyond.
Here’s a quick exercise of building a Kiwi-NRL team of youngsters…
Fullback: Joseph Manu.
Wings: Jamayne Isaako, Reimis Smith.
Centres: Matthew Timoko, Morgan Harper.
Halves: Chanel Harris-Tavita, Dylan Brown.
Middles: James Fisher-Harris, Joseph Tapine, Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
Edges: Isaiah Papali’i, Sitili Tupouniua.
Hooker: Brandon Smith.
Bench: Jordan Riki, Xavier Willison, Corey Harawira-Naera, Josh Aloiai.
Wildcard’s Notebook
Flying Kiwis Transfer Season
If you haven’t read this piece yet then have a geeze because it’s an important historical document getting a jump start on an impending phenomenon... Flying Kiwis Transfer Season. We’ve had the Olympic Games and the big ol’ scouting spotlight that allows for Aotearoa footballers lucky enough to be a part of those squads. This after a hefty calendar of international footy from the Euros to Copa America to the Gold Cup and all sorts. Club seasons are already starting up again. Transfer business has not been fully attended to. There’s going to be a metaphorical tidal wave of new signings over the next few weeks and with the position that so many kiwi players have gotten themselves into more than a few of them are going to be swept up in it all.
This has happened before. With the transfer windows being what they are, there have been flurries where a bunch of cool as signings have taken place in a short amount of time amongst the Flying Kiwis crew. This brief window is probably the pinnacle for the time being...
But not for long. At least, hopefully not for long. There’s something close to two-thirds of the Footy Ferns squad from Tokyo who are at the end of their most recent contracts now. All the W-Leaguers. Plus a couple of the biggest names in the group. So many of the OlyWhites, especially with that being an U24 squad, are closing in on the next steps in their careers. Like, if you think that STVV and Viking are the top of the mountain for Libby Cacace and Joe Bell then you have not been paying attention, mate. Those are the footlift clubs.
And the wave has already begun swelling in the couple days since that article got written because Claudia Bunge has re-signed with Melbourne Victory and Liz Anton is heading back to Perth. Gianni Stensness is being heavily linked with a move to join Joe Bell at Viking. And Anna Leat topped the lot of them by going and doing this...
Heaps more words coming on the context of that Anna Leat deal in Flying Kiwis tomorrow so sit tight on that. Suffice to say it’s a pretty great move although she will have her work cut out getting consistent games at that level as Erin Nayler can tell you (though Erin Nayler didn’t have compatriot Olli Harder managing her at Reading or it may have been different).
The Gianni Stensness stuff is pretty funky though. He’s coming off a strong season for Central Coast in the A-League and an absolutely fantastic Olympics with New Zealand – playing in two different positions between them. That variety always helps in settling into a new club though it does suggest there’s a possibility that he could be replacing Joe Bell if he’s to be sold either now or at the end of the Norwegian season or something. Or they could be teammates and recapture the combination that saw the Aotearoa beat Norway 2-0 at the 2019 U20 World Cup. A game which has been referenced as a major reason why Norwegian club Viking chose to pursue Joe Bell as a transfer target and a game in which a certain Gianni Stensness went and did this...
For those playing at home, here’s a handy cheat sheet to follow FKTS...
Confirmed Deals:
Claudia Bunge re-signs with Melbourne Victory (August 5)
Liz Anton re-signs with Perth Glory (August 6)
Anna Leat signs with West Ham United (August 7)
Rumoured Deals:
Gianni Stensness to Viking FK (sounds legit)
Joe Bell to various English Championship clubs (definitely possible)
Matt Garbett to Brentford, Wolves, or Crystal Palace (probably just bluster but you never know)
Other Players To Watch Out For:
Erin Nayler (Free Agent)
Olivia Chance (Free Agent)
Hannah Wilkinson (Free Agent)
Liberato Cacace (Sint Truiden)
Daisy Cleverley (Georgetown University)
Paige Satchell (Free Agent)
Emma Rolston (Free Agent)
Rebekah Stott (Health Depending)
Kiwi Big Man Bullets
Beautiful yarns. Continuing on the football theme and taking it directly to the basketball court. Taane Samuel is coming off a monster year for the Wellington Saints in which he won the championship and also launched himself onto the All Star Five as by scoring 16.5 points per game to go with a shade under four rebounds a contest. Plus he knocked down his triples at 43.8%. Sizzling stuff from Samuel and now he’s been rewarded with a development deal for the Brisbane Bullets... where he’ll join a big man crew that also includes Jack Salt and Tyrell Harrison.
First he’s got a bit of 3x3 with the Tall Blacks to take care of however. Both the men’s and women’s national teams are going to play off against Australia in mid-October in daily double headers hosted in Invercargill. So, six games each for the Tall Blacks and Tall Ferns 3x3 teams. If you’re unfamiliar with the 3x3 format you weren’t watching the Olympics where it was being contested on that stage for the first time. It’s like T20 cricket for basketball. Fun, funky, quick, exciting... not as good as the real thing but the more guys and girls from Aotearoa that can make a good living out of the sport the better.
The women’s team hasn’t been named yet because they’ve gotta wait and see who gets picked in the Tall Ferns for the Asia Cup... but this is the men’s group that Taane Samuel will be a part of...
Taylor Britt
Alonzo Burton
Hyrum Harris
Dom Kelman-Poto
Taane Samuel
So yeah that one’s gonna be a banger. There’s 3x3 at the next Commonwealth Games too so big stakes on down the line. These games are gonna be on Sky TV as well as part of Basketball NZ’s wider association with the broadcaster.
And here’s an update on how the NBL Takeover is going...
(length of current contract in brackets)
Tom Vodanovich – Sydney Kings (2021-22)
Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa – SEM Phoenix (Player Option for 2022-23)
Reuben Te Rangi – SEM Phoenix (2021-22)
Yanni Wetzell – NZ Breakers (2023-24)
Corey Webster – NZ Breakers (2022-23)
Rob Loe – NZ Breakers (2022-23)
Tom Abercrombie – NZ Breakers (2021-22)
Finn Delany – NZ Breakers (2021-22)
Isaac Davidson – NZ Breakers (DP in 2021-22, team option for full status in 22-23)
Tai Webster – NZ Breakers (2022-23)
Sam Timmins – NZ Breakers (DP in 2021-22, team option for full status in 22-23)
Shea Ili – Melbourne United (2022-23)
Dion Prewster – Melbourne United (2021-22)
Jordan Ngatai – Cairns Taipans (2021-22)
Jarrod Kenny – Cairns Taipans (2021-22)
Tyrell Harrison – Brisbane Bullets (2022-23)
Jack Salt – Brisbane Bullets (2021-22)
Taane Samuel – Brisbane Bullets (2021-22 DP)
Read this for a recap on how things went last time for the NZers in the Aussie league, and let it be well known that we’re miles ahead of the numbers at this time last year. Someone like Tom Vodanovich, he didn’t even get signed until late when Sydney needed an injury replacement and now he’s fully contracted and everything. There are still full roster spots to be used for most teams. Also Corey Webster has been rumoured with a move away from the Breakers (who need to clear up a spot to sign their last import and honestly one of those ball-handling guards was gonna have to go because the fit was dubious as it stood). Plus development player spots are out there waiting to be filled. There were five such dudes last time.