The Homies Duckworth & Lewis
The Homies Duckworth & Lewis
White Ferns in West Indies, Oceania U19s Footy Champs, Tall Ferns activities, and Redcliffe/Penrith kiwi rugby league juniors
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All Whites vs Australia: Defeat In Brisbane, But Encouraging Signs (Football)
Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: Marata Niukore Still Loves Rugby League (Rugby League)
Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: Matthew Timoko Blossoms (Rugby League)
Kiwi-NRL Semi Finals Preview (Rugby League)
2022 Women’s National League – Week One (Football)
Flying Kiwis – September 20 (Football)
2022 T20 World Cup: Blackcaps Preview (Cricket)
2022 Domestic Cricket Contracts: Wellington Firebirds (Cricket)
Scotty’s Word
White Ferns sealed an ODI series win over West Indies this morning, winning the second game thanks to a solid team performance. Spin bowling in the Caribbean and batting role-players stood out as key wrinkles to track in this series. Spinners have been Aotearoa's best bowlers after two games and after the middle order stumbled in the first game, the win this morning featured crucial knocks from the role-players.
Amelia Kerr: 2inns, 68 runs @ 68avg/76.4sr.
Suzie Bates: 2inns, 67 runs @ 33.5avg/78.82sr.
Maddy Green: 2inns, 66 runs @ 33avg/64.7sr.
Lauren Down: 2inns, 37 runs @ 18.5avg/63.79sr.
Sophie Devine: 2inns, 32 runs @ 16avg/84.21sr.
Brooke Halliday: 2inns, 27 runs @ 27avg/65.85sr.
Aotearoa won the first game via the homies Duckworth and Lewis when the game appeared delicately poised (10 runs off 12 balls required). Amelia Kerr was on 47* and the kiwis were crawling along with Maddy Green, Lauren Down, Hayley Jensen unable to stick around. Brooke Halliday was with Kerr on 3* when the game was decided and this felt like the same White Ferns cycle on repeat; decent bowling, big-three do their best and no one else steps up.
Praise Jah that Green (48), Down (33) and Halliday (24) dragged their team to victory this morning. The middle order performed admirably and winning performances build confidence.
Ponder the importance of this knock for Green, who is a certified 1st 11 player with an ODI record of 22.46avg/68sr. Green has scored five 50+ scores in 48 innings and this flows into the other role-players who flash their potential, yet when required to grit through adversity they stumble. Perhaps this victory could point to a slight shift under new coach Ben Sawyer.
I believe that A-Kerr, Fran Jonas, and Eden Carson are three of Aotearoa's best bowlers and they should be selected ahead of seamers. That's obvious in a Caribbean tour but I'd also like to see these three deployed in a variety of conditions as a trio of skillful spinners who are trickier to deal with than tame medium pace. Carson took 3w @ 3.87rpo on ODI debut this morning and that's lovely, but her spin sisters Kerr (1w @ 1.70rpo) and Jonas (1w @ 1.70rpo) were instrumental in building pressure.
Fran Jonas: 17ov, 3w @ 13avg/2.29rpo.
Eden Carson: 8ov, 3w @ 10.33avg/3.87rpo.
Hayley Jensen: 14ov, 3w @ 25avg/5.35rpo.
Jess Kerr: 6ov, 2w @ 14.5avg/4.83rpo.
Hannah Rowe: 4ov, 1w @ 18avg/4.5rpo.
Sophie Devine: 6ov, 1w @ 32avg/5.33rpo.
Lea Tahuhu: 9ov, 1w @ 36avg/4rpo.
Amelia Kerr: 17ov, 1w @ 43avg/2.52rpo.
This may become even more important if Kerr continues to blossom into an elite batter at the expense of her bowling. Kerr averaged below 22 in each of her first three years of ODI cricket, then she averaged 29.87 in 2019 before three consecutive years averaging 30+ with the ball.
Last year Kerr averaged 40.83 as an ODI bowler, now averaging 33.58 this year. Kerr is also averaging 62.20 as a batter this year. Having Jonas and Carson brewing won't take overs away from Kerr, it will ease pressure on Kerr as a member of the big-three. Such development in Green, Down and Halliday does the same thing for batting.
What do Penrith Panthers and Redcliffe Dolphins have in common?
Both organisations have a team in the reserve grade and U21 finals in their respective states.
Panthers are in the U21 Jersey Flegg and NSW Cup finals, Redcliffe are in the U21s Hasting Deering Colts and Queensland Cup finals. Both teams also have connections to Aotearoa Warriors that need digesting...
Panthers are the best NRL team and face Rabbitohs this weekend, chasing a grand final. Panthers have the best development system and cracking two grand finals, perhaps a third in the same year reinforces this.
Aussies and Redcliffe folk will argue the same thing for Redcliffe who enter the NRL next season. This will be spun as fabulous Redcliffe vibes - a strong rugby league area thriving at all levels. Almost half of Redcliffe’s NRL squad signed thus far are from Aotearoa; Jesse and Kenny Bromwich (Manurewa), Jamayne Isaako (Aranui), Isaiya Katoa (Wellington), Connelly Lemuelu (Papatoetoe rugby), Jeremy Marshall-King (Whakatane), Kodi Nikorima (Burnham), Valynce Te Whare (Waikato rugby), Setu Tu (Otahuhu).
Te Whare and Tu will play for Redcliffe this weekend. Warriors squad members Rocco Berry, Daejarn Asi, Pride Petterson-Robati and Jackson Frei are also named.
Redcliffe U21s success is a combination of Redcliffe’s system and Warriors juniors. This brings together key ideas about Warriors juniors and Kiwi-NRL abundance that get repeated weekly.
Ali Leiataua, Kina Kepu, Taniela Otukolo, Demitric Sifakula and Jacob Laban are named to start while Valingi Kepu, Lleyton Finau and Zyon Maiu'u on the extended bench.
Leiataua, Sifakula, Laban and Maiu'u were all at high school last year. Now they are playing an U21s final in Queensland - apparently a rugby league heartland far superior to Aotearoa.
Warriors were third in the 2020 SG Ball season before the pandemic started. This means that the Warriors U18 team was third in a NSW competition of 16 teams. Leiataua, the Kepu twins, Otukolo, Finau and Maiu'u all played in that SG Ball team and have now elevated to a successful Redcliffe U21s team. Not only have they performed well in Australian competitions, most of them were and are well below the respective age brackets.
What's funky is that Panthers U21s/NSW Cup features William Fakatoumafi, Daeon Amituanai and Preston Riki - all of whom played for Redcliffe-Warriors last season.
Otahuhu’s Fakatoumafi was in the Warriors system for a few years and played in the last Warriors Jersey Flegg team, while Whiti Te Ra junior Amituanai played in the Warriors SG Ball team. Both played for Redcliffe U21s as Warriors juniors last year and spent most of the season in Flegg; Fakatoumafi played one NSW Cup game, Amituanai played 11 NSW Cup games with nine tries.
Both are named for the Flegg final alongside Wellington's Ilai Tuia (Randwick).
Riki moved through the Warriors system to play NSW Cup with Warriors before the pandemic shifted things, leading Riki to play Queensland Cup with Redcliffe last year. There is an obvious connection with James Fisher-Harris as they are both from the Hokianga region and Riki picked up a gig with Panthers NSW Cup where he has settled as an edge forward.
Fakatoumafi, Amituanai and Riki (like many others) could have all fit into a Warriors NSW Cup team. That wasn't possible though and Kiwi-NRL abundance is such that every NRL team wants talent from Aotearoa, so there is overflow. Ponder Otukolo, who has only played NRL and U21s because Redcliffe have blokes at dummy half they prefer. Warriors can't force Redcliffe to play Otukolo and this works out nicely because Otukolo can run rampant in U21s.
Panthers are genuinely fantastic as a development system. Redcliffe are a strong presence in Queensland and do many things well, yet their U21s success this year features an exciting Warriors presence that shouldn't be overlooked.
Wildcard’s Notebook
There was a rather significant football match on last night, and I’m not talking about the All Whites vs Australia. Already written about that one though, check it out here. Nope, this is about the Aotearoa team at the OFC Championships which just qualified for next year’s U20 World Cup in Indonesia.
FIFA did some FIFA things for this next edition, expanding the OFC contingent to two teams out of 24 total. Meaning that instead of having to win the thing, the U19s (one year younger than next year’s tourney so that everyone’s still available then) only had to make the final. And that they did with a gritty 2-0 win over Tahiti in the semi-finals last night a few hours before the All Whites kicked off.
In all honesty it wasn’t much of a game. The U19s have had a couple very physical matches in a row and tiredness (plus a couple injuries) had to be a factor. But they were able to get past the hosts thanks to a second minute header by defender Isaac Hughes, then a goalkeeping error early in the second half gave Kian Donkers his ninth goal in four games. Tough game though it was, the kiwis never really looked like conceding. They haven’t allowed a goal all tournament ahead of the final against Fiji – which is on tomorrow at 6pm (live stream available on the OFC website).
So far we’ve seen an 8-0 win over the Cook Islands, a 9-0 win over American Samoa, and a 6-0 win over the Solomon Islands in the group stages. Then a 5-0 win over Papua New Guinea in the quarters... who somehow made it through to the knockouts without even playing a single game. Two default losses due to visa issues then a default win as Tonga no-showed their final game put them in as one of the best third-placed finishers thanks to a superior goal difference than the Cook Islands... who played all their games and therefore lost to New Zealand by a lot more than a 3-0 default margin. Imagine being an Oceania Football administrator, lol. No thanks.
Then the kiwis won that semi-final. All 23 players in the main squad have started at least one game (although Jackson Jarvie had to go off after 37 mins of his lone start). That includes three goalies with Oscar Mason and Joseph Knowles both getting one game while Henry Gray started the other three. Captain and central defender Finn Surman has started every game, as has midfielder Fin Conchie. Other players to have gotten minutes in all five matches: Noah Karunaratne, Oliver Colloty, Jay Herdman, Oliver Fay, Charlie Beale, and Everton O’Leary.
Wouldn’t say this is one of the strongest teams we’ve seen in this age grade in recent years. Of course it wouldn’t be given some of the young guns who’ve come up through these ranks in the last decade. Part of that is the heavy Wellington Phoenix presence with 12/23 players in the main squad and another of the three travelling reserves coming outta that academy, which is a great sign for that club but it also sorta means that everybody is being selected... whereas in previous teams the Ole Academy has had an equal presence to push everything up even further.
Ole seems to be in-between generations at the moment but they’ve got a couple fellas already overseas who’ll come into contention by that World Cup (this OFC squad was entirely domestic except for Jay Herdman). Most notably goalie Kees Sims who’ll really spark things up within the GK union. Sure there may not be a Cacace/Stamenic/Bell in the team but with Sims competing with Gray, Mason, and Knowles that’s some sizzling goalkeeping depth.
Also there’s increasingly positive chat that they’ll be able to get Fulham youth teamer Matt Dibley-Dias to commit to Aotearoa – the land of his birth. He’s also eligible for England, Portugal, and Brazil and seems to prefer the latter based on interviews. But let’s just say the pathway into the All Whites is a lot shorter than the other three.
Oscar Obel-Hall is another who is eligible. Christchurch United fella, currently in the academy at Danish club Esbjerg. Defender Jack van Luijken (formerly of Onehunga Sports) is another although Transfermarkt says he left Go Ahead Eagles (Netherlands) at the end of last season. Bound to be a couple other pros eligible too. Plus a few other folks we’ll see in the National League when that gets underway next week.
In comparison, this is the U20 squad that went to the 2019 World Cup, where they lost in controversial fashion to Colombia in the knockouts…
Ten of them have been capped at senior level. Seven of them are in the current All Whites squad (and Singh would be were he fit). Four were in the starting line-up against Australia on Thursday night. And it’s only been three years since.
A few standouts from the current crop... Finn Surman has been a rock at the back as expected. He’s becoming increasingly more and more consistent with his A-League exposure and with Winston Reid’s impending retirement that’s a very welcome thing as we replenish the CB stocks. Surman’s a couple years away from that level but he’s on the path, no doubt about it.
Isaac Hughes and Lukas Kelly-Heald have been really good alongside him in the back three. Henry Gray has been spotless in goal. There was chat of him doing some trial rounds in Europe earlier in the year so hopeful he’s not too far away from a big opportunity.
Noah Karunaratne is a fun player to watch. The Kiwi/South Asian comparison for an attacking midfielder coming outta the Welly Nix is going to be Sarpreet Singh... but they’re quite different players. Karunaratne is more combative. More of a dribbler, quite direct.
Also Kian Donkers and Oliver Colloty have been unstoppable with their goal scoring. Some beauties and some scrappers but they all count the same and you always want a striker who loves scoring the ugly ones just as much. Chris Wood would be horrified at anything less. Donkers has 9 goals in 222 minutes. Colloty has 7 goals in 228 minutes. Donkers from Cashmere Tech, Colloty from Melville.
Funky little tour coming up for the Tall Ferns. Just been announced they’re gonna do a quickfire Aussie tour with four games over eight days against WNBL teams. No full internationals so no caps on offer, effectively they’re a preseason hit-out for their opponents… but having not played since the Asia Cup almost twelve months ago now it should be a handy wee excursion.
The 12-player squad that’s been picked includes a couple hearty veterans but also quite a few younger players with a definite aim towards building out some depth. Obviously players with current pro deals are excluded if things clash although there is one curious exception: Lauryn Hippolite is in the TF’s meaning that one of her games will actually be against her own club team.
Hippolite’s a development player for the Melbourne Boomers, having joined them last season when Tall Ferns coach Guy Molloy was still in charge. Supposedly she’ll get more out of playing for NZ than playing as a DP down the bottom of the roster and Molloy’s obviously got the phone numbers of those he needed to talk to to sort that out. In contrast, Penina Davidson, fully contracted Boomer player (the defending Aussie champs btw), is not in the Tall Ferns.
Here’s that squad for ya...
Ash Taia (Wetterbygden Sparks, Sweden)
Charlisse Leger-Walker (Washington State Cougars, USA)
Gabriella Adams-Gavet (Northern Kahu)
Jazzmyne Kailahi-Fulu (Northern Kahu)
Kendell Heremaia (Whai)
Lauryn Hippolite (Mainland Pouakai)
Lilly Taulelei (Tokomanawa Queens)
Micaela Cocks (Northern Kahu)
Olivia Berry (Northern Kahu)
Pania Davis (Rockingham Flames, NBL1 West)
Parris Mason (Tokomanawa Queens)
Stella Beck (Tokomanawa Queens)
Ashley Taia, Charlisse Leger-Walker, and Lauryn Hippolite were all in the Asia Cup squad the last time this team assembled in October 2021. Micaela Cocks and Stella Beck return to offer some key experience. Cocks is closing in on 150 caps while Beck captained the Tokomanawa Queens to the Tauihi title recently.
Big Tauihi presence. Half the Northern Kahu squad have been selected... and that’s barely even an exaggeration. Krystal Leger-Walker is playing NBL, Tahlia Tupaea is Australian (and playing NBL), Marte Grays and Madison Wolfe are American, and Tera Reed has gotten a gig in Finland. Otherwise all four of the remaining players to take the court in the Tauihi final for the Kahu are here. Including Gabriella Adams-Gavet, a sister of Steven and Valerie, who is also married to ex-Warriors NRL fella James Gavet.
Parris Mason is another fun selection. She, along with Aliyah Dunn, won the national netball title with the Central Pulse then went directly into winning the national basketball title with Tokomanawa Queens. Dunn is quite close to the Silver Ferns and didn’t play a huge role for the Queens. On the other hand, Mason’s basketball is further ahead than her netball (she was a huge factor in the finals for TQ) so here she is at age 19 on tour with the Tall Ferns.
Then there’s Pania Davis who is an Australian-raised centre with kiwi parents. Tipped off to Tall Ferns selectors by old mate Rob Beveridge. Davis is six foot six and 19 years old. Huge size for a team that hasn’t tended to have a whole lot of that particular trait. She’s playing NBL1 in Perth. Another emerging player type selection.
Also Lilly Taulelei is 17 years old fresh from the U17 World Cup earlier in the year, one of the brightest prospects of her age for sure.
By no means a full strength Ferns squad, probably only 3-4 of these players would make one of those. But that’s not the point. This is a developmental tour and it’s always interesting to see what players come into consideration whenever national team selectors have to dip below the expected names.