Sporadic Nibble
Sporadic Nibble
Tim Southee's Test form, Tauihi returns, White Ferns WT20 prep, Kiwi-NRL juniors, Wellington Phoenix ALW signings, Men's National League TOW & more
Podcast
Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Youtube
Reading Menu
2024 Women’s National League – Week 1 (Football)
2024 Men’s National League – Week 1 (Football)
Flying Kiwis – October 2 (Football)
All Whites vs Tahiti & Malaysia: Squad Yarns & Preview (Football)
Kiwi-NRL/NRLWahine Spotlight: 2024 Grand Final Preview (Rugby League)
Three Themes Of New Zealand Warriors Recruitment & Development Ahead Of The 2025 NRL Season (Rugby League)
27fm Weekly Playlist: October 4 (Music)
Scotty’s Word
The New Zealand Cricket slump was updated this week with Tim Southee bowing out as Test skipper and the NZ Development Women losing both their one-dayers against Sri Lanka and Australia Under 19s. Six games all up for the development women and six losses.
Southee's stats suggest he is a better bowler when he isn't captain, and is even slightly better at batting…
(batting | bowling)
Captain Southee: 12.38avg/80.24sr | 38.6avg/2.87rpo
Not Captain Southee: 16.13avg/82.8sr | 28.99avg/3rpo
Southee shouldn't be brushed aside as he remains one of the best seamers in Aotearoa right now. He's still hovering around 130km/h with his out-swing and sporadic nibble back into right-handers. Since his Test debut in 2008, Southee only has two phases of three consecutive years averaging 30+ and while he's close to that mark right now, there are enough positive signs to suggest that he can get back to consistent wickets.
Southee averaged 30+ in his first four years of Test bowling (2008-11). Then he averaged 30+ between 2015-17 before dropping below 30avg in his next four years of Test bowling which takes us up to 2022...
2022: 38.89avg/3.36rpo
2023: 27.41avg/2.6rpo
2024: 73.12avg/3.32rpo
Fair play as 2024 is Southee's worst year of Test bowling. Captaincy obviously didn't help his mahi but Southee averages 28 in both India and Aotearoa (2.97rpo in both). If you can look past the Southee stuff this year as captain, there are signs that he can flip his form around.
For anyone wondering, here are Tom Latham's Test stats as skipper...
Captain Latham: 31.07avg/52.59sr
Not Captain Latham: 40.34avg/46.61sr
White Ferns love warm up games. Ahead of their first game at the T20 World Cup vs India on Saturday morning, they had a win over South Africa and a loss vs England…
South Africa: 92 | NZ: 95/2
Leigh Kasperek: 3w @ 1.75rpo
Amelia Kerr: 3w @ 3.25rpo | 37 runs @ 100sr
Eden Carson: 2w @ 5.25rpo
Sophie Devine: 35* @ 145.8sr
NZ: 127/4 | England: 133/5
Amelia Kerr: 64* @ 139.1sr
Izzy Gaze: 26* @ 136.8sr
Lea Tahuhu: 2w @ 7rpo
Rosemary Mari: 2w @ 7.3rpo
Eden Carson: 1w @ 10.5rpo
Observations...
Georgia Plimmer opened the batting in all three games vs Australia. Bates/A-Kerr opened in both warm up games.
Bates bowled 1ov @ 6rpo vs South Africa. Devine bowled 1ov @ 14rpo vs England.
Jess Kerr bowled 3ov @ 9rpo in one game vs Australia. Then she bowled 3ov @ 5.6rpo vs South Africa and 2ov @ 9.5rpo vs England. J-Kerr has 2w @ 109avg/7.2rpo in T20Is this year.
Brooke Halliday scored 6* @ 85.7sr vs South Africa and 2 runs @ 33sr vs England, batting fourth in both games. Halliday has 15.6avg/91.9sr in 2024 T20Is and 12.8avg/90.7sr in her career.
Spinny conditions should favour Kasperek as part of a nifty spin unit. Coach Ben Sawyer doesn't favour Kasperek though. After playing 12 T20Is in 2020-21, Kasperek has played five T20Is in 2023-24. Kasperek has a T20I bowling record of 14.89avg/6.39rpo and has been fabulous in Super Smash during this period...
2019/20: 15w @ 14.1avg/5.5rpo
2020/21: 13w @ 11.5avg/5.5rpo
2021/22: 20w @ 9.3avg/4.9rpo
2022/23: 16w @ 13.5avg/6.3rpo
2023/24: 17w @ 12.3avg/5.3rpo
That's five consecutive years of 10+ wickets and averages below 15.
The Australian Prime Minister's rugby league teams were named this week and Kaeo Weekes is the only player in the wider Aotearoa mix selected. Weekes is born and raised in Australia but his heritage links him to NZ Kiwis, especially as he is a half/fullback and Aotearoa is stretched for depth in these roles.
No Grand Final players are selected though so we still need to wait and see where Jack Howarth winds up. The lack of any other players with links to Aotearoa in the men's and women's PM squads feels good, maybe even a lovely sign that Aotearoa has more players pursuing NZ Kiwis/Kiwi Ferns.
I'm entering the 'Kiwi-NRL Juniors Who Helped Australian Teams Win' zone for 2024. Here are the three previous entries...
And here are the basics for this year...
Queensland Mal Meninga Cup (U19)
Tweed: Mason Barber (Kaikohe), Ryder Williams (Marist)
Burleigh: Disharne Tonihi (Shirley)
NSW SG Ball (U19)
Bulldogs: Roy Tatupu (MAGS), Shaye Fa'aoga (Pt Chev), Sosaia Alatini (Hornby), Sione Siulua (Manurewa), Cheldon Hayward (Linwood), Bronson Reuben (Kaiapoi)
NSW Jersey Flegg (U21)
Bulldogs: Cassius Tia (Marist), Fahmy Toilalo (Otahuhu), Callum Donaldson (West Coast)
Sharks: Salesi Ataata (Otahuhu), Felix Fa'atili (Hornby), Richie Tupuailei (Hornby)
Lots of players from the South Island there. Ryder Williams and Cassius Tia also played as halfbacks in teams who won their finals. Bronson Reuben didn't play in the SG Ball final but he's another play-maker who had a few U19 games for Bulldogs this year. More South Islanders and halves in the Kiwi-NRL junior mix are key indicators of rugby league growth in Aotearoa.
Musical jam…
Wildcard’s Notebook
Judd Flavell is the new Tall Blacks head coach and that’s a wonderful thing. He was surely the most qualified candidate to replace his old teammate Pero Cameron after having just won back-to-back NZ NBL titles with the Canterbury Rams. Those were his third and fourth championships as a head coach in NZ, plus he’s also got huge experience as an assistant with multiple teams in the Australian NBL – including the Breakers when they were still winning championships.
BBNZ head honcho Dillon Boucher (another former teammate of Flavell’s) said that there was plenty of overseas interest in the gig. But everybody who’s been in or around or even just watched the Tall Blacks environment from afar knows that their greatest strength is the way they connect to the jersey, the team, and the nation they represent... so getting a head coach who is not only a superb tactical leader but also someone who’ll ensure they continue to embody that culture is the ideal outcome for all involved. Credit to BBNZ for recognising that.
Flavell did apparently apply for the Breakers job too. He didn’t get that one, he was probably never in consideration given how the Breakers tend to do things these days, but perhaps it’s all worked out for the best.
Sticking with basketball, the 2024 Tauihi season tips off this evening. The Women’s NBL. It’s be a fascinating season for a few different reasons, one of which obviously being the amazing emerging talent in this country. Another is the way they’ve continued to try and expand the league in a commercial sense.
Not all of that is going to be everyone’s cup of tea. They’ve moved the season to align more with the WNBA in America and also foreign European leagues but that has come at the expense of alignment with the WNBL in Australia. Won’t get crossover players the way we do with the blokes... but perhaps that was a strategic thing too given that the WNBL is in the midst of changing ownership and one of its biggest teams (Melbourne Boomers now Geelong United) just got relocated. It’s a league that’s always in a seemingly precarious spot and kiwi players didn’t tend to get many minutes there anyway... which is a big lifestyle sacrifice for not much money.
Tauihi’s concept involves very competitive salaries and a small enough season that players can get a couple other worldwide gigs to keep the cashflow up. You could almost envisage it operating like a T20 Cricket league. There’s an emphasis on bringing in foreign talent to boost the level. That’s taken shape as a minimum of five imports – with at least two of those coming from the Asian confedaration (mostly leftover Aussies but also a few from other nations) – though that’s at least been partly balanced by the rule that at least one NZer has to be on the floor at all times. There are five teams playing over twelve weeks. Short and sharp and all action.
If you want a better idea of the players involved and how they fit into their respective teams, always be following Tony O’Connor on Twitter for these things. A quick breeze through would be that the Northern Kahu are stacked with Tall Ferns, boasting Penina Davidson, Tahlia Tuapea, and Krystal Leger-Walker who have all been key players for the national team over the last few years (though Tupaea’s had injuries and KLW was unavailable for the last few tours). Younger sister of the whanau Tannika Leger-Walker is one of their amateur players, as is Bailey Flavell who made a Tall Ferns debut recently. Mary Goulding’s return to the pro ranks after her horror car crash a couple years ago is another highlight.
Tauranga Whai have got Tall Ferns shooter McKenna Dale involved, while Pahlyss Hokianga is one of our very best prospects. Eva Langton and Jade Kirisome have been around the national team recently. The Tokomanawa Queens have arguably the most impressive array of imports but they also have Stella Beck’s inimitable leadership while Lauryn Hippolite and Grace Hunter are TF notables. Mainland Pouakai will of course be relying on local favourite Esra McGoldrickm while Sharne Robati and Ashlee Strawbridge are also in town. And the Southern Hoiho have Zoe Richards and Samara Gallagher as their best-known kiwis.
The Niche Cache is funded by generous kiwis who love sport. Please consider joining the Patreon whanau or upgrading to a paid Substack salute where you can access our bonus weekly Subscriber podcast.
The Wellington Phoenix ALW side have announced two more players, with Canterbury United fullback Lara Wall and Japanese attacker Mebae Tanaka each signed after successful trials. Tanaka is 28 years old and has played professionally in Japan and Korea. More recently she’s been doing her thing for Preston Lions in the Aussie NPL, having moved there with a stated aim to try and earn an A-League contract. Now she’s done so. Hers appears to be a one-year deal and she’s the fourth import on board following goalkeeper Carolina Vilão, forward Olivia Fergusson, and midfielder Maya McCutcheon. The Wellington Phoenix men have already signed two Japanese players themselves: Kazuki Nagasawa and Hideki Ishige. Auckland FC have Hiroki Sakai too. Good time to be a Japanese baller on this side of the globe.
As for Lara Wall, she’s a two-footed fullback who has gotten this opportunity after several years of excellence in the domestic competition. Time after time it’s being proven that the best NZ Women’s National League players are capable of making this step up when given the opportunity. Grace Jale, Liz Anton, Mackenzie Barry, Rebecca Lake, Grace Wisnewski, Deven Jackson, Chloe Knott, Macey Fraser... even younger options like Kate Taylor, Milly Clegg, and Ruby Nathan. No dramas there.
The name I didn’t mention is the most relevant: Michaela Foster. Not only is Wall coming into this team predominantly as a left-back replacement for Foster, who has moved to Durham in England, but she’s a similar age to what Foster was when she signed her first deal and of a similar pedigree in terms of National League reputation. She’s also signed on an initial scholarship deal, like Foz did, though Wall’s comes with an automatic senior upgrade for next year. Great addition to the team... and yet another Canterbury Pride player at the Nix (albeit Wall is originally from Dunedin and played first for Southern United).
Long story short: the Phoenix lost a local left-back so they’ve signed the next best one from the domestic league. Although... Zoe McMeeken probably does get first dibs at the LB spot, let’s be fair. Two very different styles of left-back. Wall is a typical runner/overlapper who tackles hard and whips in great crosses. McMeeken is an insane athlete emboldened to go roaming wherever the ball might be. But she does also tackle hard. Meanwhile Foster was less of a runner but more precise with her technique and also brought that set piece skillset.
Wellington Phoenix ALW Squad
GK - Carolina Vilão (Imp), Aimee Danieli (Schol)
DEF – Mackenzie Barry, Rebecca Lake, Tiana Jaber (Aus), Zoe McMeeken, Lara Wall (Schol), Ella McMillan (Schol)
MID – Annalie Longo, Maya McCutcheon (Imp), Daisy Brazendale, Alyssa Whinham
FWD – Olivia Fergusson (Imp), Mebae Tanaka (Imp), Grace Jale, Emma Main, Manaia Elliott, Olivia Ingham, Ela Jerez (Schol)
There’s also Marisa van der Meer and Ella McCann who are out with ACL injuries and won’t play this season. MVDM was released from her contract but promised a new one when she recovers. McCann was only on a scholarship deal so not sure if Wall replaces her or if they just have five scholars now. They’re required to sign at least three more senior players to fill out the squad and they have one more import spot remaining. Seems like they’re a right-back short (or a versatile defender if they decide ZM is the RB), a central midfielder short, and possibly a striker too depending on how they view Jale/Fergusson/Tanaka. Each of them is probably a winger first and foremost… but each is also capable of leading the line. Paul Temple will have some ideas, don’t worry about that.
The Aotearoa squad for this month’s Women’s U17 World Cup has been announced. Alana Gunn is coaching the side, having just got back from taking next year’s group through qualifying. The U17s have become annual things so it’s a busy job. There are actually players from the 2024 U16s who’ve made this World Cup group who weren’t in the 2023 U16s who qualified for it. Here’s the full squad...
Players who were part of the 2023 U16s in qualifying:
Alyssha Eglinton, Amber de Wit, Brooke Neary, Charli Dunn, Ela Jerez, Emily Humphrey, Hannah Saxon, Katie Pugh, Kyra Morgan, Laura Bennett, Natalie Young, Pia Vlok, Sophie Campbell
Players who were part of the 2024 U16s:
Mikaela Bangalan, Laura Bennett, Charley March, Harriett Muller, Katie Pugh, Pia Vlok, Natalie Young
That mostly accounts for the whole group, with only Grace Bartlett and Millee Loxton left from the domestic crew. Them and three foreign-based players. Katie Chellenbron plays for English third-tier MK Dons and has made at least one senior appearance this year. She’s a forward. Maddison Sawkins is listed with Gungahlin United but is also affiliated with Canberra United. She was involved in a Canberra trial game earlier this year and, what’s more, she was also on the radar of the Australia U17s in late-2023. She’s a defender. Mary Brown is a forward for Bulleen Lions in NPL Victoria. She made three apps for the senior side this year though predominantly played for the U20s where she was an absolute maniac scoring 24 goals in 21 matches. Bulleen Lions is the club that Rebekah Stott made her return for after the cancer journey.
Also before cracking into the Men’s National League Team of the Week, let’s also add that several of these players also played in week one of the WNL. Alyssha Eglinton (midfield), Ela Jerez (attacking midfield), Katie Pugh (striker), and Brooke Neary (goalkeeper) lined up for the Wellington Phoenix Reserves. Hannah Saxon was at left-back for Eastern Suburbs. Pia Vlok played right-wing for Auckland United. And not only did Charli Dunn play central defence for Western Springs... she even scored a goal. Big looping header, sweet as. Several of the others are also in squads and could potentially pop up later in the season when they return from the Dominican Republic. Aotearoa plays Nigeria on Thursday 17 October, the Domicans on Sunday 20 October, and Ecuador on Wednesday 23 October. Top two go through to the knockouts, no third-placers in this one.
Random National League fact: When Napier City Rovers played Western Springs last weekend, they had two pairs of brothers in their starting eleven: Stephen and James Hoyle, as well as Kieran and Ethan Richards. Western Springs also had Jackson and Riley Manuel in their team. Then to make it even funkier, WS goalie Oscar Mason is an ex-Napier City player and his brother Harry Mason featured off the bench for Rovers. Four sets of brothers involved in the same game. Two for Rovers. One for Springs. And one family having to split allegiances between the both of them.
Men’s National League – Team of the Week #1
GK – William Tønning (Napier City Rovers) – This wasn’t a huge week for the goalkeepers in general, and WT’s side won 4-0 so he did his fair share of spectating. But the Danish gloveman did have one hectic spell in the 5-10 mins prior to half-time with Western Springs threatening to get back into the match where he made three fantastic interventions in a row rushing off his line. Crucial stuff.
RB – Declan Tyndall (Cashmere Technical) – This dude used to be a speedy winger but these days they’re playing him as a fullback and he had a lovely game in Cashy Tech’s opening round victory, even setting up a goal to show he’s still got those attacking tendencies.
CB – Aaryan Raj (Eastern Suburbs) – In the Week One review I referred to him as a National League Rolls Royce. Patient in possession, aggressive out of it. Dictated the Suburbs build-up and won a bunch of challenges on the way to a clean sheet win. Didn’t even need to see his aerial prowess but he’s got that about him too. Honestly a little surprised he didn’t get more of an Auckland FC look-in... but it’s not too late.
CB – Alex Meaclem (Coastal Spirit) – At the heart of a stunning defensive display from his team in keeping Wellington Olympic, who scored 79 goals in 18 Central League matches, scoreless for the first time in any competitive game since March. Repelled absolutely everything.
LB – Justin Gulley (Wellington Olympic) – At the other end of the pitch to Meaclem was Justin Gulley who led a tenacious Olympic defensive resistance, full of poise and commitment, to ensure that even on a rare day when their attack wasn’t clicking at least they were still unbeatable.
CM – Campbell Strong (Eastern Suburbs) – Gotta love the way this dude plays, dropping in and collecting the ball deep in the midfield and sparking things from there. Works hard. Tackles well. Very tidy week one outing from Strong in a clean sheet win for his Lilywhites.
CM – Joe Hoole (Coastal Spirit) – Now for a different style of midfielder, with Hoole bringing the pure glorious ruggedness. You can’t say that Coastal didn’t rise to the MNL occasion. They were fired up across the park, no thought of hesitation, and nobody exhibited that more than this bloke.
CM – Yuya Taguchi (Cashmere Technical) – And now a third variety of midfielder, this one being the skillful number ten style playmaker. Taguchi has a way of slipping so naturally into his team’s flow that you almost don’t notice how much he’s doing. Then he scores a beautiful lobbed goal and oh yeah that’s right, he’s awesome.
FW – Kieran Richards (Napier City Rovers) – The whole Rovers front three was superb against Western Springs, especially with their collective high press. Adam Hewson scored twice. Oscar Faulds got a goal and two assists and will no doubt feature in the Team of the Week many times this year. But Richards got them going with a goal and an assist of his own. Former WeeNix dude, spent time at Uni in the States, he played through the middle for Rovers and was a presence throughout.
FW – Garbhan Coughlan (Cashmere Technical) – A goal and two assists. The reigning National League MVP started this term the way he ended the last as an irrepressible creative force who simply refuses to stop scoring (and setting up) goals.
FW – Angus Kilkolly (Auckland City) – This guy got a goal and two assists as well. The goal was a penalty but he dispatched it beautifully and his hold-up/lay-off game was on point the entire way. He clearly enjoys playing against Birkenhead United because he scored a hatty against them in the Chatham Cup semi-final too.
Musical Jam...