The Honorary Duckmaster
The Honorary Duckmaster
Sophie Devine wins stuff, Steven Adams + Ducks, Warriors/Redcliffe updates, Lydia Ko form, National League U20 subs, City Kickboxing season & more
Kia ora and welcome to The Niche Cache. There are many ways to support our mahi. Patreon has extra podcast each week. Word of mouth works great too. Engagement is fabulous and if you’re on our website, dwell on those ads. Love ya self.
Podcast
Reading Menu
Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: The Matthew Timoko Scouting Report (NRL)
Celebrating The Irrepressible Exploits of Shea Ili In NBL22 (Basketball)
There Goes Another Disappointing Breakers Season (Basketball)
The Curious Summer Of Ajaz Patel (Cricket)
Exploring The (Relative) Kyle Jamieson Test Plateau (Cricket)
Scotty’s Word
Sophie Devine the champion...
After the White Ferns slipped out of the World Cup, I wrote this about Sophie Devine's epic summer. Not only had Devine flipped her ODI mahi around to be the White Ferns best player at the tournament, Devine had already bagged Women's Big Bash League and Super Smash championships. Now we can add the Fairbreaks T20 Invitational tournament to this championship run with Devine snaring three consecutive T20 championships.
Suzie Bates' Falcons batted first in the Fairbreaks final with Bates hitting 11 (9), while Devine bowled 2 overs @ 7.5rpo. Devine then slugged 51 runs @ 145.71sr at the top of the Tornadoes batting line up before she was caught by Bates, although the damage was already done as Tornadoes were on 76 when Devine fell as the first wicket in pursuit of 151. Katey Martin wasn't required to bat in the final for Tornadoes and only batted three times during the tournament.
Devine's Fairbreaks scores: 48, 4, 11, 52, 37, 51. That's 213 runs @ 143.91sr and here is how Devine's batting mahi looks since the WBBL late last year through to today...
WBBL: 14inns, 442 runs @ 34avg/128.48sr.
Super Smash: 4inns, 153 runs @ 51avg/145.71sr.
ODI World Cup: 7inns, 309 runs @ 44.14avg/91.42sr.
Fairbreaks Invitational: 7iins, 213 runs @ 30.42avg/143.91sr.
As for Bates and Martin at the Fairbreaks Invitational...
Suzie Bates: 15th - 147 runs @ 36.75avg/132.43sr.
Katey Martin: 3inns, 26 runs @ 8.66avg/89.65sr.
The English summer will likely involve some kiwi wahine and hopefully Devine can continue this epic run of performances, plus winning. Devine had already elevated her mana during that World Cup campaign and somehow she keeps on adding mana juice. Devine is currently Aotearoa's best wahine cricketer and my Aotearoa bias suggests she is the world's best T20 cricketer as well.
Lydia Ko maintaining...
Lydia Ko finished tied-12th at the LPGA Founders Cup this weekend and is maintaining her consistent groove throughout 2022. Ko struggled in the second round as she hit 4/14 fairways while hitting at least 7/14 fairways in the other three rounds and as Ko is the best at getting out of a bunker, her 0/2 Sand Saves in the third round is also notable.
Ko's ability to stay in the mix is fabulous. While Ko has one win in her eight tournaments this season, there is far less space between her best and worst performances. This comes in the form of making the cut in all eight tournaments with six finishes in the top-20. Ko would miss cuts or balloon outside the top-20 when she was off in past campaigns and her worst result this season is 25T, all of which stems from her elite short game.
Where does Ko ranking for Putting Average? 1st. Ko is also 2nd for Sand Saves and 4th for Putts per GiR. Remember that Ko is not elite off the tee and while she is good enough in that aspect, her ranking of 5th in Total Prize Money and 6th in CME Globe Season is based on her excellence around the greens. That's the gritty kiwi style.
NZ Warriors/Redcliffe Update...
Why did Freddy Lussick jump straight into the Warriors team to face Rabbitohs ahead of Taniela Otukolo? Because Otukolo has barely played reserve grade and I'll regurtitate my favourite nugget here; Otukolo only played U21s and NRL last season. Otukolo doesn't even have a Queensland Rugby League profile (for Redcliffe) yet and even though I have enjoyed Otukolo's NRL mahi, many of these Warriors youngsters need to be brewed in reserve grade.
Lussick has been around NSW Cup since 2019 and has played 12 NRL games since his debut in 2020. This is not a note about who the better player is, this is just the reality of the Warriors situation as many of the young players have lacked consistent footy. When these young players are in NRL, the chances of winning decrease as they are finding their way and when put back down in reserve grade they can gather minutes and experience.
Otukolo for example, played 44 minutes for Redcliffe in reserve grade this round. The hardest thing about NRL footy is showing up every week for high level footy and the best way to prepare for that is showing up every week in reserve grade. Lussick played 53mins in his first Warriors game and understandably stuck to a basic dummy half role. Lussick made 41 tackles, with a dummy half run and a 45m kick. That’s fairly solid for a bloke who barely trained with the team.
Tohu Harris also played plenty through the middle for Warriors and regardless of where Harris is named, we should probably assume that he will play through the middle. On top of passing, offloading and tackling, Harris is fairly good at running the footy. Sometimes it’s via footwork or he’s just a big lad. The thing about Warriors footy is that Reece Walsh is the stain for the deck while the team’s leaders are the bits of wood that make up the deck. Here’s a decent Harris run where he gets 15m, stands in the tackle for a quick play the ball allowing Walsh to scoot…
Oh yeah, did I mention Harris can pass too…
Rocco Berry also played for Redcliffe as starting centre. For Redcliffe U21s there was the first appearance of Benjamin Kosi who started on the wing. Benjamin is the younger brother of Edward and after doing this yarn about Benjamin and Tome Poona shifting from Aotearoa to Redcliffe this year, both have now played for Redcliffe U21s. Eric Va'afusuaga and Ali Leiataua started as centres again, while Zyon Maiu'u got another game as edge forward.
A key learning from covering these Warriors/Redcliffe appearances is not to judge whether Warriors players play or not. Poona for example hasn't played since his first game a few weeks ago and the Kepu twins pop up all over the show. We have no idea what is happening with these players at Redcliffe and some may suffer injuries, others might play local Brisbane leagues instead. My insights are just from team lists and without further information, there is no need to jump to conclusions about players from these team lists.
Joey Manu & Isaiah Papalii…
Two lads from Aotearoa who are best in their positions and they are better this season?
Papali'i has 5 tries this season, chasing his 7 tries from last season. Papali'i is averaging 157m/game this season, up from 150m/game last season. There are slight increases in his Tackle Busts and Post Contact Metres per game as well. Last season Papali'i was anointed the best edge forward in the NRL and he's better this season.
Manu is an absolute monster and has been since his debut in 2016. Manu's best try scoring season was last year with 10 and he's already scored 6 this season. Manu's best try assisting season was 2018 when he had 9 and he already has 5 this season. Manu's best linebreak season was last year with 12 and he's already got 8 this season.
City Kickboxing Season...
When Eugene Bareman tells you that City Kickboxing has a palpable buzz, pay attention. Last newsletter I laid out the fights locked in for Blood Diamond, Israel Adesanya and Kai Kara-France as a taster of CKB season. Bareman told Combat TV that Genah Fabian returned to Aotearoa after her recent win in PFL, while the likes of Brad Riddell and Carlos Ulberg are nearing announcements for their next fights as well.
Chuck in the CKB boxing department where my comrade covered the fights locked in for Junior Fa and Hemi Ahio. Not only does CKB consist of the world's best MMA fighters, they also have world-class boxers under coach Doug Viney and when they're all in Auckland preparing for international fights, the buzz is palpable.
Wildcard’s Notebook
National League Shenanigans
This one’s a fun story, so much fun I even stumbled upon some 6pm news coverage of it which is an extreme rarity for domestic footy in this country. For any kind of non-franchised and non-rugby domestic sports in this country to be honest. Don’t know why people don’t understand the importance of covering local sports in our various national news services – it’s not a matter of audiences being uninterested because you make them interested by covering them and putting it on that level of respect – but whatever that’s how these things go.
At The Niche Cache, we take energy from that stuff since when domestic cricket, for example, is being ignored… that becomes our space to thrive at mainstream expense. No dramas. Sweet as.
So what got people taking notice of National League football all of a sudden? In its winter regional stage no less?
Well since they revamped the leagues there’s been this rule about naming two U20 players in your starting line-up. There’s also been one live streamed game per week. This week’s live stream was Takapuna vs Manukau United in an important Northern League game which could have big relegation ramifications later in the season with these likely to be two of the lower half finishers. Manukau United named their obligatory two youngsters in the line-up... then the first time the ball went out they subbed them off lol. The ball went out of play ten seconds into the match.
You want a hot take? Here’s a hot take... I have absolutely no issue with this.
It’s not even about the rule. Personally I don’t think it’s a particularly worthwhile rule. Sure it helps with the development of some younger players but to what end? The guys who are good enough to play at a high level in Europe or wherever are not going to have much trouble cracking it at a National League club by age 18 or whatever. And anyway the majority of those top tier pros these days are emerging from just two academies: the Wellington Phoenix and Ole Academy. It looks good on paper from NZ Football who can say they’re putting these rules in place. I’m just not sure convinced this type of reverse engineering will have the desired effect.
Plus look at the All Whites that generational wave of outstanding players all still around that 23-or-younger range, which is mirrored on the women’s side by the Welly Nix Wahine and the U17 World Cup bronze medalists from a couple years back, and yeah not sure player development is really the biggest drama out there.
But it’s not about the rule. You put the rule in place, there you go. That’s all you can do. You can’t then hold clubs’ hands and guide them into treating the rule in exactly the spirit that you intended it to induce. If a manager wants to do something like this then oh well, so it goes, cop it and move on.
Manukau had a couple of their usual U20s out injured. This was a very important game for them. It’s not like this is something happening every week and it’s not like the two fellas who got subbed off (Caleb Prasad and Leo Hall) wouldn’t have known what was going on. Arguably the bigger rule problem is the one that allows you to make five subs, thus taking away the risk factor of a move like this. Would it have happened if it meant that Manukau would’ve only had one sub remaining for the rest of the ninety minutes? Possibly... but at least there’s a tactical risk there.
Also the two guys who were subbed on were Thomas Golding and Maro Bonsu-Maro. Golding is 22 years old, MBM is 25 years old (both ex-Auckland City youngsters, curiously enough). Freaking out over an U20 player being replaced by a 22 year old is kinda funny, just saying.
As for the dubious moral ground being occupied here... spare me that one, please. Time-wasting. ‘Professional’/intentional fouls. Diving. Taking throw-ins or quick free kicks from the wrong spot. Goalkeepers holding onto the ball for longer than they’re allowed. Mind-games at penalty time. Shirt-pulling on corner kicks. Bus-parking tactics. Every rule is going to get stretched and poked at from time to time. That’s just sports, mate. Everybody chill.
Shea Ili Gold
Duckmaster Steve
Expect more Steven Adams exit interview stuff as well as a round-up of his second round series against Golden State – and the resounding message he sent to those who felt he was somehow unplayable in the playoffs – in a day or two when the next Kiwi Steve in the NBA article shows up. Plus the old favourite Quotable Steven Adams will get a 2021-22 edition too in the coming weeks.
Not quite yet though because dammit I really needed that series to go to seven games for my writing schedule. Mondays and Tuesdays are super busy with Flying Kiwis research and various podcasts and this Substacker plus the bloody Wellington Phoenix went and got eliminated too so yeah it’ll take a few days to get through everything but don’t worry it’s all on the way.
In the meantime: ducks.
No doubt you’re as confused as me about these mythical Peabody Ducks. The exchange was in reference to an interview that Steve-o did with Drew Hill of the Daily Memphian right at the start of the season. It was sort of like an introduction to the city kind of thing and part of that interview went like this...
DH: Are you familiar with the Peabody ducks?
Adams: No, is that an ice hockey team or something?
DH: No, it’s not an ice hockey team. That’s the Mighty Ducks. These are ducks that walk down the red carpet to a fountain in the Peabody Hotel.
Adams: Ohhhhh! I’ve heard about this!
DH: Would you ever check them out?
Adams: Yeah, when I first stayed here I stayed at the Central Station Hotel. They told me to check out the ducks. Yeah, that’s f------ crazy, that’s ducking crazy, mate.
Having done some further research on the matter... yeah, that about sums it up. The ducks are a tradition of the Peabody Hotel, where a couple times a day they’re led along a red carpet and into the water feature at in the hotel foyer. It’s been happening for over 80 years and has become a major attraction in the city. There’s a video and some more facts/history over here.
Looking at some of the vids, Tips is right to wonder if it’s mostly just a kid thing. It would look kinda weird this 6’11 fella with long hair and a big beard towering over a bunch of youngsters to watch ducks go walking and then take a swim. Though he can certainly afford a decent room at the Peabody if he wanted… so, you know, he could conveniently just happen to be there at 11am one morning as the ducks go walking.
Alternatively: Honorary Duckmaster Status. That’s a thing they do. Assist the Duckmaster on his duties for a time. Anyone can simply buy the honorary Duckmaster experience if they want... but it’d be way more fun to see him added to a list of past celebrity Duckmasters that includes: “Oprah Winfrey, Patrick Swayze, Florence Henderson, Emeril Lagasse, Peter Frampton, Joan Collins, George Hamilton, Molly Ringwald, Gene Simmons, Larry King, Kevin Bacon, and many (many!) more”.
Ducks, bruh. Love it.