The Breakdown
Kiwis & Kiwi Ferns squads, an NZ Breakers victory, Jacob Duffy excellence, Auckland United in Wuhan, White Ferns slippery slope, WNL Team of the Week & more
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Scotty’s Word
New Zealand Kiwis and Kiwi Ferns squads were announced this week. The sign of Aotearoa’s depth is shown in the players who weren’t selected in the Kiwis squad and how the Kiwi Fern wider squad features players who could easily be in the top squad. This leads us into how the Kiwis squad is a tight group of 21 players and the Kiwi Ferns have 21 players in their squad, plus eight more wahine in the wider squad.
I’m not sure why there is a difference between the two squads but this is aligned with an irrelevant observation about NZRL formatting each squad announcement in different ways. There are always inconsistencies in players who are listed as being unavailable due to injury or other reasons and who just wasn’t selected, so it’s niggly to break down why different moves were made.
Will Warbrick, Jordan Riki, Leo Thompson and Griffin Neame aren’t in the 2025 squad though. The three forwards are the lads to focus on here as they have all made their debuts after the 2022 World Cup and they have long-term Aotearoa potential, but the combination of a grizzly forward pack full of experience and Xavier Willison choosing Aotearoa over Cook Islands means there isn’t much space in the squad.
Willison deserves his selection and, as I’ve yarned about all season, his ability to play middle and edge is an asset for Aotearoa. His cousin Tenika is only in the Kiwi Ferns wider squad so there probably won’t be two Willison’s debuting this spring but that’s a hearty whanau connection regardless.
Regional Breakdown for Kiwis
Northland: James Fisher-Harris, Dylan Brown
Auckland: Erin Clark, Kieran Foran, Keano Kini, Moses Leota, Ronaldo Mulitalo, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Isaiah Papali’i, Matthew Timoko, Naufahu Whyte
Waikato: Xavier Willison
Bay of Plenty: Briton Nikora
Wellington: Joseph Tapine, Nelson Asofa-Solomona
Canterbury: Jamayne Isaako
Australia: Phoenix Crossland, Sebastian Kris, Casey McLean, Scott Sorenson
The funkiest pocket in the Kiwis squad is selected Dylan Brown and Nelson Asofa-Solomona despite their wobbly NRL situations. Brown fell out of the top-17 equation at Eels after he signed with Knights for next season but is now lined up for a starting halves role with Kieran Foran.
Asofa-Solomona has had injuries, suspensions and constant noise about his status with Storm throughout the 2025 NRL season. Thoughts of him in this forward pack, especially alongside Willison, are irresistible though.
The best footy for Kiwis has featured Brown and Asofa-Solomona during the recent wave. I’m curious about how Kiwis culture brings the best out of them and whether this could be something to track in the future as Kiwis mana may be able to boost players when returning to the NRL bubble.
Breaking Down Another Year Of Christchurch’s Excellent Rugby League Production Line
How Brisbane Broncos Became The Best Recruiters Of New Zealand Rugby League Talent In Australia
New Zealand Warriors Women Laid Exciting Foundations In Their 2025 Return To NRLW
The Kiwi Ferns squad is tremendous. New players are Ivana Lauitiiti, Patricia Maliepo, Shakira Baker, Shaniece Monschau and Tysha Ikenasio. Four Warriors wahine and Monschau who played for Bulldogs this year.
The wider squad has Jasmin Strange, Mackenzie Wiki, Matekino Gray, Moana Courtenay, Payton Takimoana, Tenika Willison, Trinity Tauaneai and Martha Mataele. Courtenay and Mataele were also named for Tonga though.
Strange is an Aussie who is also eligible for England. In theory her selection in the wider squad suggests she is choosing Aotearoa but if she doesn’t play, she could still pursue other nations. She has been part of elite teams (Knights/Roosters) and is the daughter of Roosters coach John Strange, sister of Ethan who was selected for Australia.
Wiki slides out of the top-tier after her debut last year. Along with Takimoana being in the wider squad, this shows how deep the Kiwi Ferns outside back unit is. Takimoana was awesome in her first season of NRLW but there are fabulous, established internationals in the outside backs, as well as Ikenasio who is a more powerful runner.
Nicholls will be fullback. Then there are Abigail Roache, Annessa Biddle, Leianne Tufuga, Mele Hufanga and Shanice Parker who should be the centres and wingers. Tufuga and Parker played centre in NRLW but have been wingers for Kiwi Ferns before, while Biddle has played edge forward for Aotearoa.
Monschau and Baker add to the edge forward depth. Amber Hall has switched to Samoa and while she is awesome, the forwards selected in this squad are all faster and more mobile than Hall. There is always lots of headlines about players representing Samoa and Tonga, but having Lautitiiti and Maliepo pursue Kiwi Ferns over Samoa and Tonga are eligibility wins for Aotearoa.
Regional Breakdown for Kiwi Ferns
Auckland: Abigail Roache, Annessa Biddle, Apii Nicholls, Georgia Hale, Ivana Lauitiiti, Leianne Tufuga, Mele Hufanga, Otesa Pule, Patricia Maliepo, Shaniece Monschau, Tyla King, Tysha Ikenasio
Waikato: Ash Quinlan
Taranaki: Tiana Davison
Manawatu: Shakira Baker
Wellington: Alexis Tauaneai
Australia: Angelina Teakaraanga-Katoa, Brianna Clark, Brooke Anderson, Raecene McGregor, Shanice Parker
Most Tests…
Kiwis
Kieran Foran: 28
Joseph Tapine: 18
James Fisher-Harris: 14
Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad: 14
Jamayne Isaako: 11
Briton Nikora: 11
Isaiah Papali’i: 9
Ronaldo Mulitalo: 9
Kiwi Ferns
Georgia Hale: 19
Apii Nicholls: 15
Mele Hufanga: 10
Shanice Parker: 8
Abigail Roache: 8
Brooke Anderson: 6
Brianna Clark: 6
Leianne Tufuga: 6
Post pandemic results…
Kiwis
Lost 2022 World Cup semi-final vs Australia: 14-16
2023 Pacific Championships
vs Samoa: 50-0 win
vs Australia: 18-36 loss
vs Australia: 30-0 win
2024 Pacific Championships
vs Australia: 10-22 loss
vs Tonga: 24-25 loss
vs Papua New Guinea: 54-12 win
Kiwi Ferns
Lost 2022 World Cup final vs Australia: 4-54
2023 Pacific Championships
vs Australia: 10-16 loss
vs Tonga: 28-10 win
vs Australia: 12-6 win
2024 Pacific Championships
vs Australia: 0-14 loss
vs Papua New Guinea: 36-0 win
vs Australia: 4-24 loss
Blackcaps T20I batting strike-rates for those in the top five mixer...
Finn Allen: 163.27
Tim Seifert: 142.3
Glenn Phillips: 140.59
Mark Chapman: 139.89
Daryl Mitchell: 137.53
Tim Robinson: 137.37
Rachin Ravindra: 136.14
Devon Conway: 128.36
Kane Williamson: 123.08
Exploring New Zealand’s T20I Mixer After The Series vs Australia
2025 ODI Women’s World Cup: New Zealand’s Slippery Start
I was alarmed by the White Ferns ODI stats that I rolled through in their ODI World Cup check-in after two losses to start the tournament. Those stats were based on recent mahi so I went back further to the start of 2020 and they were just as iffy (World Cup teams only)…
Win/loss ratio
Australia: 9.6
England: 1.818
South Africa: 1.695
India: 1.214
Bangladesh: 0.8
Sri Lanka: 0.647
New Zealand: 0.555
Pakistan: 0.485
Average runs per wicket batting
Australia: 40.63
India: 33.66
South Africa: 32.93
England: 31.62
New Zealand: 25.82
Sri Lanka: 25.57
Pakistan: 24.27
Bangladesh: 22.9
Average runs per wicket bowling
Sri Lanka: 33.94
New Zealand: 30.75
India: 29.28
Pakistan: 28.5
South Africa: 28.45
Bangladesh: 24.49
England: 23.35
Australia: 21.7
Lots of Jacob Duffy stuff so you know he’s a T20I legend (who hasn’t been a dominant force on the domestic circuit in Aotearoa though)…
Blackcaps T20I bowlers with 30+ wickets and averages below 22
Jacob Duffy: 41w @ 16.92avg
Lockie Ferguson: 64w @ 17avg
Daniel Vettori: 38w @ 19.68avg
Matt Henry: 39w @ 21.12avg
Trent Boult: 83w @ 21.43avg
Blackcaps T20I bowlers with 30+ wickets and below 7.5rpo
Daniel Vettori: 38w @ 5.7rpo
Nathan McCullum: 58w @ 6.82rpo
Mitchell Santner: 124w @ 7.06rpo
Lockie Ferguson: 64w @ 7.1rpo
Jacob Duffy: 41w @ 7.17rpo
Michael Bracewell: 31w @ 7.32rpo
Blackcaps T20I bowlers with 30+ wickets and strike-rates below 16
Jacob Duffy: 41w @ 14.1sr
Lockie Ferguson: 64w @ 14.3sr
Matt Henry: 39w @ 15.2sr
Jimmy Neesham: 51w @ 15.9sr
T20I bowing by year
2021: 42avg/4.6rpo
2022: 28.2avg/8.6rpo
2023: 35avg/8.7rpo
2024: 19.1avg/6.9rpo
2025: 13.8avg/7.1rpo
2025 Winter in England
Hundred: 22.5avg/9rpo
Blast: 23.2avg/8.2rpo
Super Smash seasons
2020/21: 85.2avg/9.2rpo
2021/22: 53avg/9.2rpo
2022/23: 44.6avg/9.4rpo
2023/24: 17.2avg/6.7rpo
2024/25: 30.8avg/7.8rpo
First-Class seasons in NZ
2020/21: 20.1avg
2021/22: 54.8avg
2022/23: 32.1avg
2023/24: 24.4avg
2024/25: 32ov @ 3.9rpo
Musical jam…
Nick’s Notebook
How about them Breakers, aye? Just when everything seemed miserable they went and whipped out a spectacular 117-88 win against the defending champs (albeit a depleted defending champs) to get that first dub on the board. Parker Jackson-Cartwright led the way with 20 points and an incredible 17 assists – one of the frustrations about their 0-4 start was how one-dimensional they could be on offence with PJC hurling up tough shots after running around screens. The difference here is that he spread the floor by leaning into his passing game (as we also saw this in strong flashes against Brisbane in G1) and then, to be fair, he was also making those tough shots. But the balance is key. PJC could easily lead the league in assists this year.
But he was far from the only contributor. Sam Mennenga also scored 20 points, knocking down four triples in the process. Got to the line a few times too. Tough minutes from him against JaVale McGee and he was excellent. Still not seeing much Rob Baker for whatever reason but Izaiah Brockington helped set the tone with early buckets on his way to 14 points. Karim Lopez had one of his best NBL performances with 16 points and 9 assists and some pretty decent defence too (four steals!). He was scoring from all levels.
And then, hold up, weren’t they trying to tell us that the kiwi bench is washed? That no other team in the NBL would want these guys? Well, Reuben Te Rangi was drilled 4/8 threes on his way to 18 points and was even sinking floaters from the mid-range. Rob Loe looked as good as he has done thus far, starting to get his legs under him after an injury-riddled NZ NBL season. Carlin Davison earned his way back into the rotation with 12 points and 4 rebounds including a couple of late threes. And while Izayah Le’Afa didn’t clog up the stat sheet while he was out there (4p/4a), the Breakers outscored the Hawks by 30 points during Le’Afa’s 21 minutes of action. Only PJC had a better plus/minus and he played a whole lot more (34 mins – still the only player in this team that Coach Kop is giving actual starter’s minutes to... though admittedly Brockington and Mennenga had some foul trouble).
Absolutely incredible how this team could go from shooting 29/118 (24.6%) from threes in the first four games to being 18/41 (47.7%) in this one. There’s no way they can sustain that but that’s alright because they won by 29 points so they can afford a few misses. Big thing is that the confidence is back. They’ve shown they can make those shots – with eight different players converting at least one 3PA – and it opened up so many more offensive outlets.
What’s more is that they finally brought a gritty and cohesive defensive strategy to the table as well, doubling up on JaVale McGee and often giving Tyler Harvey similar treatment, limiting those two stars just enough that the onus was on the rest of the Hawks to step up and other than a few Mason Peatling moments nobody really did. Reuben Te Rangi scored as many points as the entire Hawks bench combined. Now the trick is to make this the baseline every game.
Breakers Season Averages (League Rank) vs Last Night’s Game
Field Goal Percentage: 42.3% (8) vs 47.7%
Three Point Percentage: 24.5% (9) vs 43.9%
Free Throw Attempts/gm: 15 (9) vs 15
Rebounds/gm: 35.0 (8) vs 44
Assists/gm: 19.3 (4) vs 31
Steals/gm: 5.5 (9) vs 9
Turnovers/gm: 13.8 (9) vs 12
Points/gm: 78.5 (9) vs 117
Opponent Field Goal Percentage: 49.0% (10) vs 47.0%
Opponent Free Throw Attempts/gm: 26.0 (9) vs 23
Opponent Rebounds/gm: 38.8 (9) vs 36
Opponent Assists/gm: 21.5 (10) vs 20
Opponent Points/gm: 99.5 (10) vs 88
The only stat there that they didn’t improve upon was the free throw attempts but they shot 15/15 so close enough... and the key one there was Izaiah Brockington shooting 5/5 which means he had as many free throw attempts in this one game as he did in the four previous ones combined. And he only played 19 mins due to foul trouble (the commentators were freaking out about how he didn’t start the second half not realising he had three fouls to his name already).
Auckland United have been winning damn near everything on the women’s scene for the last few years and that’s come at a profitable time with FIFA bringing about the first ever Women’s Champions Cup this year. Equivalent to what Auckland City did a few weeks ago (and most years for the last decade plus... though potentially no longer with the Oceania Pro League threatening to take over) when they face Pyramids FC of Egypt. Nobody really paid much attention to that game, sadly, with ACFC’s trip to the Club World Cup having overshadowed it. But this one has the novelty factor of being brand new.
Auckland United faced hosts Wuhan Jianghan, who double as the reigning Chinese Super League and AFC Women’s Champions League trophy-holders – they beat Melbourne City on penalties in the final of that competition... Rebekah Stott was one of those who missed in the shootout after Wuhan had scored a 90+8th minute equaliser to force extra time. That game was played at this same stadium. Wuhan have got a mostly domestic squad with many Chinese internationals, the most famous of which beng Wang Shuang who has also played for Paris Saint-Germain, Racing Louisville, and Tottenham Hotspur. She was a teammate of Abby Erceg at Louisville. Wang was the one who scored that late goal against Melbourne City.
It was also a late goal that allowed them to beat Auckland United. Not quite as late as the ACL final but not far off... Wuhan winning this thing in the 88th minute thanks to a goal that had initially been ruled offside but which VAR managed to change the mind of the referee about (correctly so). So close to forcing extra time against a professional team with far more pedigree and renown. Incredible effort from AUFC regardless.
They were under big pressure to begin with, Jess Philpot making a goalline clearance after only six minutes, but they fought through that by making it as tough as they could for Wuhan Jianghan. Lots of ball pressure. Heaps of work off the ball. Physicality and aggression. Damn, they nearly took the lead after 25 mins when Dani Canham whipped a curling shot that got tipped over the top by the keeper. It was strange seeing the most dominant team in the country as underdogs but they approached it really well with a cohesive plan and complete buy-in from the players. Even in some pretty sweltering conditions with 30k+ in the crowd all cheering against them.
There were no weak links in the team but Hannah Mitchell was a standout making heaps of saves. Jess Philpot and Talisha Green were awesome in defence (a physical, aggressive game is music to the ears of Talisha Green). The work of the midfield was great, especially Yume Harashima. And Ava Collins put in a serious shift up top, carrying on the fantastic form she’s shown in the past few games for this club. Collins has 16 caps for the Football Ferns and has been a professional in Denmark. This current stretch is the best I’ve ever seen her play.
Best thing about this game? Was that Auckland United picked the exact same starting eleven against Wuhan as they did for an 8-0 win against Canterbury United the week before. Aussie defender Kris Molloy did debut in that game so this was only her second appearance but still. Other new signings Annalie Longo, Kiara Bercelli, Siobhan Edwards, and Ellie La Monte didn’t start that National League game and were all on the bench (Bercelli did come off the bench vs her old mates at Canterbury; the others weren’t involved). So while they did stock the shelves for this rare opportunity, they kept faith with the players who got them here. Not that there were any holes in that AUFC squad to begin with.
Auckland United Starting Eleven:
Hannah Mitchell (GK), Talisha Green (RB), Jess Philpot (CB), Aliana Granger (CB), Kristen Molloy (LB), Yume Harashima (CDM), Chloe Knott (CM), Danielle Canham (CM), Alexis Cook (RW), Rene Wasi (LW), Ava Collins (CF)
Substitutes Used:
Zoe Benson (LW), Siobhan Edwards (RW), Annalie Longo (CM), Emma Rolston (CF), Tui Dugan (CM)
Unused Substitutes:
Charlotte Eagle, Greer Macintosh, Kiara Bercelli, Ava Pritchard, Kate McConnell, Ellie La Monte
All Whites vs Poland/Norway: Squad Yarns & Preview
2025 Men’s National League – Week 2
2025 Women’s National League – Week 2
NZ National League season is the one that matters... but there is an interesting development going on in Australia with the new “Australian Championship” beginning this weekend. It’s the new second tier league competition featuring 16 clubs from around the country – eight foundational teams that were selected by the league and eight more who qualified from the various state leagues. The teams are divided into four groups of four leading into knockouts. They wanted a full league season but it was a bit hard to do that financially off the bat so they’ve settled on this Champions League kinda format which could change in the future if it’s successful.
There’s a good chance that I’ve missed a few (and there are always dual-nationals that we don’t yet know about) but as far as I can tell here are the kiwis involved...
Avondale – George Ott, Emlyn Wellsmore
Marconi Stallions – James Bayliss (dual)
Sydney Olympic – Zac Zoricich, Seth Clark, Ryan Feutz
James Bayliss is the brother of Lachlan Bayliss who went to the last Olympics with NZ and plays regularly for Newcastle Jets. Dunno if he’s really worth counting... he’s eligible though. The others are all true blues with plenty of NZ National League experience except for Wellsmore, who was born in Adelaide but has played for NZ at U17 level.
George Ott played a wee bit for the Wellington Phoenix coming through their ranks. Seth Clark is a Christchurch lad who went down the USA college route. Zoricich played for Waitakere and Western Springs and is the son of Chris Zoricich. Ryan Feutz is a Western Suburbs product who has been scoring in bundles this season and recently trialled with Newcastle Jets (although it sounds like Sydney Olympic kinda got in the way of that opportunity, wanting to keep him around).
Women’s National League – Team of the Week #2
GK – Lauren Paterson (Southern United) – Went up against a forward quartet of Maggie Jenkins, Natalie Olson, Summer Laskey, and Hannah Pilley and the only goal she conceded came from a sliced cross. Could have done better with that one but she more than covered it with an array of spectacular stops against the aforementioned... especially Nat Olson whom she made her nemesis.
CB – Freya Des Fountain (Wellington Phoenix) – Holly Robins was also awesome so they can share the cosmic honours... those two outside CBs did not only brought plenty of defensive aggression for the Nix (in a clean sheet win) but they also stepped into midfield to progress things, their recovery pace is superb, they pass the ball cleanly. And now both are off to the U17 World Cup.
CB – Kelsey Kennard (Southern United) – Can’t let Hannah Mackay-Wright run the shop every week, this time Kelsey Kennard brought her immense experience in limiting a rampant Wellington United side to just one goal. Goalie Paterson got the most shine but KK bossed it too.
CB – Caitlyn Byrne (Central) – Central lost 9-0 at home to Eastern Suburbs in week one, conceding the first inside of a minute. That was without Tauranga Moana addition Caitlyn Byrne. With her, they held the NRFL Prem champs West Coast Rangers out for thirty minutes before eventually only losing 4-0 with most of WCR’s threat only coming from set pieces. Byrne made a huge difference. Mackenzie Butler deserves some praise too.
RWB – Kailey Short (West Coast Rangers) – Pretty much everything that WCR did against Central either came from corner kicks or through the mahi of Kailey Short playing higher up than usual on the right wing. Scored once. Could have had half a dozen assists on another day (she got zero... but TOW honours make up for that – gotta recognise the input as well as the output).
CM – Rose Morton (Southern United) – You’ve seen Rose Morton play football many times. You know exactly how she does it. High energy. Always pressuring the ball. A few sneaky runs forward. Tireless. Inspirational. All them things.
CM – Sienna Higinbotham (West Coast Rangers) – Right place, right time for the American midfielder to score a couple of goals, including the crucial and belated first to settle Rangers down, and that’s a trait that’s always of use.
LWB - Kya Solomon (Wellington Phoenix) – She only played one half of the WeeNix’s 2-0 win over Petone but what a half it was. Solomon was unstoppable on that left edge. The timing of her runs. The pace she showed. Her ability to beat defenders. She scored a lovely goal and would’ve had more if she’d played longer but she’s another one who’s off to the U17 World Cup next so she’d already proved her point.
FW – Sienna Candy (Wellington Phoenix) – Another standout from a superb WeeNix performance... also another imminent U17 WC representative. Candy’s ability to sneak into pockets, her close control, her wonderful vision, and the dynamic run she made to set up the second goal add up to another top class prospect.
FW – Hannah Pilley (Wellington United) – All the chances seemed to fall to other players as the Diamonds were unable to find a winner against Southern. That’s because Pilley as too busy setting them all up. There must have been at least four huge moments created by HP’s through balls and the only reason they didn’t get anything to show for them was the goalkeeper in this TOW.
FW – Margi Dias (Canterbury United) – A goal, an assist, and a statement performance in the pouring rain as Canterbury United shrugged off last week’s shocker for a 3-3 draw against Western Springs. Dias (and Petra Buyck) built up a stunning lead in the first half hour. The Pride couldn’t hold it but close enough.
Musical Jam...