Three Steps
Canterbury rugby league, Wellington Phoenix ALW finals hopes, Plunket Shield, White Ferns, Football Ferns depth & more
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Reading Menu
Aotearoa Warriors Diary: Defending The Second Whare vs Raiders (Rugby League)
Exploring The Wellington Phoenix’s Newfound Defensive Excellence (Football)
Flying Kiwis – March 19 (Football)
Football Ferns vs Thailand: Squad Yarns & Preview (Football)
White Ferns vs England: Sneaky Player Stats & Trends (Cricket)
2023/24 Plunket Shield: Michael Bracewell Explodes & More From Wellington vs Otago (Cricket)
2023/24 Plunket Shield: Canterbury & Auckland Upset Contenders (Cricket)
27fm Weekly Playlist: March 22 (Music)
Scotty’s Word
NZ Warriors take on Raiders in Christchurch tonight. This puts Canterbury rugby league in the spotlight and below are Kiwi-NRL juniors from Canterbury who have played this year. This group includes the West Coast lads because most of them competed in Canterbury Rugby League competitions and doesn't include any Bulldogs.
Bulldogs have that partnership with Canterbury Rugby League and are doing lovely things for players and coaches from the region. Excluding the Bulldogs Kiwi-NRL journeys shows how much talent is coming out of Canterbury and also serves as a reminder that Bulldogs do not own Canterbury as a Kiwi-NRL farm. Sosaia Alatini (Hornby) is scoring crazy tries for Bulldogs U19s, West Coaster Callum Donaldson scored a try last week and is starting lock for U21 Jersey Flegg and others include Cheldon Hayward (Linwood), Bronson Reuben (Northern).
There are Kiwi-NRL juniors from Canterbury who haven't played yet this season such as Richie Tupuailei (Hornby Rugby) and Bishop Neal (Hornby) who are with Sharks and NZ Warriors respectively. This list is only players who have appeared in team lists and there are plenty more lurking below the radar...
NRL
Dolphins: Jamayne Isaako (Aranui)
Broncos: Jordan Riki (Hornby)
Cowboys: Griffin Neame (West Coast)
Queensland Cup/NSW Cup
Sunshine Coast/Storm: Caius Fa'atili (Hornby)
Eels: Daejarn Asi (Aranui)
Western Suburbs: Solomon Alaimalo (Hornby)
NZ Warriors: Tanner Stowers-Smith (Halswell)
NSW U21s
Storm: K-Ci Newton-Whare (Riccarton)
Sharks: Felix Fa'atili (Hornby)
Dragons: Riley Pascoe (West Coast)
Sea Eagles: Oliver Lawry (Halswell), Una Uasi (Linwood)
Raiders: Jack Sandford (CBHS)
NZ Warriors: Makaia Tafua (Linwood), Noah Harmer-Campbell (Hornby)
Queensland/NSW U19s
Sharks: Cairo Rangihuna-Ruri (Linwood)
Knights: Te Kaio Cranwell (Linwood)
Eels: Dakota Kakoi (Linwood)
NZ Warriors: Jason Salalilo (Papanui)
There was a whirlwind of anxiety about White Ferns depth during the week. While that journey goes way too deep into the mangroves for a few Substack paragraphs, we can safely say that Aotearoa's depth isn't as good as England. Nothing dramatic there and the series sweep between the two ‘A’ teams from these nations reflects this.
Game tahi: England won by 30 runs
Game rua: England won 8 wickets
Game toru: England won by 13 runs
Player stats are below. Mikaela Greig got the North vs South salute, now Kate Anderson and Hayley Jensen led the way in NZ-A T20s. Solid series for Molly Penfold as well, especially as she was a sneaky omission from the White Ferns squad.
Batting
Kate Anderson: 65 runs @ 32avg/100sr
Saachi Shahri: 50 runs @ 16avg/102sr
Georgia Plimmer: 46 runs @ 23avg/97sr
Leigh Kasperek: 40 runs @ 40avg/133sr
Prue Catton: 34 runs @ 17avg/94sr
Polly Inglis: 27 runs @ 27avg/108sr
Mikaela Greig: 27 runs @ 13avg/81sr
Hayley Jensen: 27 runs @ 13avg/122sr
Bowling
Hayley Jensen: 6w @ 11avg/6.2rpo
Molly Penfold: 4w @ 17avg/6.1rpo
Claudia Green: 2w @ 33avg/8.3rpo
Leigh Kasperek: 2w @ 49avg/8.9rpo
Sarah Asmussen: 6ov @ 10rpo
Nensi Patel: 4ov @ 7rpo
Bree Illing: 4ov @ 11.7rpo
As we near the end of Plunket Shield, I'm checking with the All Stars and Emerging All Star teams. My guidelines for the second stanza re-up were that players needed to do something in the second half of the season to keep their sport. The first three batters in the All Stars team tested this. Sean Solia had a 50+ score and he's played all three games so far. Tom Bruce has played three games with a 95 in his last game, while Henry Nicholls only played one game (promoted to Blackcaps) with scores of 14 and 19.
I wanted to select Brett Hampton if there was a hole and Nicholls is the unlucky bloke there. Hampton's got 20+ wickets and 300+ runs, plus he's usually having a whack which is always fun.
All Stars
Sean Solia, Tom Bruce, Henry Nicholls, Joe Carter, Nick Kelly, Mitch Hay, Doug Bracewell, Nathan Smith, Scott Kuggeleijn, Ajaz Patel, Jacob Duffy.
Nicholls out, Brett Hampton in
This was a bit easier for the Emerging lads. Brett Randell, Adithya Ashok and Fraser Sheat haven't played in the second half of the season. Matt Fisher, Muhammad Abbas and Luke Georgeson have impressed in the last three games.
Emerging
Will O'Donnell, Nick Greenwood, Gareth Severin, Dale Phillips, Zak Foulkes, Max Chu, Kristian Clarke, Brett Randell, Adithya Ashok, Fraser Sheat, Ray Toole
Randell out, Matt Fisher in
Sheat out, Muhammad Abbas in
Ashok out, Luke Georgeson in
The end of Plunket Shield means moving into Kiwi County Tour mode. Four lads have got County Championship gigs. Canterbury's Will Williams is still with Lancashire and Auckland's Matt Quinn is still with Kent as lads based in England.
Derbyshire: Blair Tickner
Lancashire: Tom Bruce
Nottinghamshire: Will Young
Worcestershire: Nathan Smith
Musical jam…
Wildcard’s Notebook
Can the Wellington Phoenix still make the A-League Women’s finals from here? Actually, yeah, it’s not as far-fetched as it might have seemed after their defeat at home against a Cortnee Vine inspired Sydney FC team last week. That felt like a deal-breaker at the time but after the WahiNix bossed their way to a 4-0 win against Adelaide to cash in their game-in-hand to maximum effect we can now see a pretty clear picture as to what they need to happen.
Step 1 – Win Both Remaining Games
The Phoenix are away against Canberra United on Sunday, a team battling to avoid the wooden spoon, then the following week they host Western Sydney Wanderers who are one of their main rivals for sixth place. As things stand, the Nix are five points back and can only gain a maximum of six. There is no other avenue. They simply have to win their remaining games (a process that started with the Adelaide game, so it was three in a row required and they’ve ticked off the first task).
Step 2 – Newcastle Jets Need To Drop Points
Should the Nix win their last two games, then they’ll be on 31 points. That takes Perth Glory and Brisbane Roar out of the equation, leaving just two other teams they’ll need to surpass. One of those is Newcastle Jets who are two points ahead of them with the same amount of wins but worse goal difference. The Jets just beat Western United 3-1 which was a rough result for Wellington, however they’ve got the in-form Melbourne Victory next followed by Adelaide in the final game. Probably don’t hold out much hope for Adelaide, even if they had some nice patches in the first half vs the Nix, but that’s fine because if the Jets lose or draw against the Victory then the mission remains on course.
Step 3 – Western Sydney Wanderers Need To Drop Points
Consecutive wins against Perth and Canberra have put WSW in the box seat for sixth place. With a five-point gap ahead of the Phoenix, this all needs to work out perfectly if that first ever finals appearance is going to happen. Luckily, the Nix play WSW in the final round. We’ve already established that they absolutely have to win that match... but even if they do it will be too late should WSW have beaten Western United this upcoming weekend. Like with the Jets, a draw would be okay because the only scenario that matters involves the Nix getting to 10 wins, which would give them the tie-breaker over Wanderers. Goal difference is superior too, though that won’t matter here.
The pesky thing is that both Wanderers and the Jets play on Saturday so the Phoenix could be eliminated by the time they kickoff on Sunday... or they could suddenly have their playoff chances entirely back in their own hands. Western United had won six in a row prior to losses vs Sydney FC and Newcastle. They’re a strong team, beaten grand finalists last season. They can do a job. And if this round all goes to plan then Wellington vs Western Sydney will effectively become a playoff for the playoffs.
Leading NZ Goal Contributions in the A-League Women’s
Hannah Wilkinson – Melbourne City – 9 (8 goals, 1 assist, 0.52 G+A/90)
Macey Fraser – Wellington Phoenix – 8 (3 goals, 5 assists, 0.51 G+A/90)
Emma Main – Wellington Phoenix – 5 (3 goals, 2 assists, 0.46 G+A/90)
Michaela Robertson – Wellington Phoenix - 4 (3 goals, 1 assist, 1.11 G+A/90)
Hannah Blake – Adelaide United – 4 (3 goals, 1 assist, 0.25 G+A/90)
Michaela Foster - Wellington Phoenix – 4 (1 goal, 3 assists, 0.26 G+A/90)
Grace Jale – Perth Glory – 3 (3 goals, 0.20 G+A/90)
Alyssa Whinham – Wellington Phoenix – 3 (1 goal, 2 assists, 0.46 G+A/90)
Ruby Nathan – Canberra United – 3 (3 assists, 0.40 G+A/90)
Liz Anton – Perth Glory – 3 (3 assists, 0.18 G+A/90)
An experiment that I did for the All Whites depth when their latest squad was named last week, was to pick a back-up squad entirely of players who weren’t selected for the tournament formerly known as the Winsunited Cup. So here’s an attempt to do the same with the Football Ferns...
GK: Georgia Candy, Murphy Sheaff, Aimee Danieli
DEF: Liz Anton, Grace Neville, Rebecca Lake, Marisa van der Meer, Suya Haering, Zoe McMeeken, Ella McMillan
MID: Grace Wisnewski, Alyssa Whinham, Chloe Knott, Emma Pijnenburg, Helena Errington, Aniela Jensen
FWD: Milly Clegg, Hannah Blake, Deven Jackson, Emma Main, Jana Radosavljevic, Michaela Robertson, Ava Collins, Maggie Jenkins
I’ve put a few more limitations on this lot. In light of the purpose of this experiment, I’ve not picked any players over the age of thirty. Obviously the likes of Ria Percival, Erin Nayler, Betsy Hassett, Liv Chance, and Annalie Longo are all in the mix but this is about proving a point with the next gen players coming through.
A few of this back-up squad are currently injured. Nine of them have been capped previously, all of whom are either current pros or are in the American college system (except for Chloe Knott but she did play A-League this season so close enough)... there are players on the domestic scene whom I reckon are as good as some of this lot but until they get the opportunities it’s hard to put them in this context. Maybe the Auckland FC women’s team will help that next year. Something to think about, anyway.
Following on from some of the White Ferns chat we’ve had on the podcast this week (and what my comrade has been writing about for literal years now, without this ever changing), here are some stats. Keep in mind that this is from prior to the second T20 against England - which did nothing to change the pattern anyway.
Batting Numbers In White Ferns T20 Wins (Last Two Years)
Suzie Bates – 577 runs | 48.08 avg | 108.86 sr | 6 50s
Amelia Kerr – 469 runs | 46.90 avg | 124.40 sr | 2 50s
Sophie Devine – 337 runs | 33.70 avg | 118.66 sr | 2 50s
Maddy Green – 226 runs | 56.50 avg | 128.40 sr | 0 50s
The Rest of the Top 7 – 316 runs | 22.57 avg | 103.95 sr | 0 50s
Batting Numbers In White Ferns T20 Losses (Last Two Years)
Suzie Bates – 212 runs | 19.27 avg | 98.60 sr | 1 50
Amelia Kerr – 203 runs | 25.37 avg | 98.06 sr | 1 50
Sophie Devine – 176 runs | 17.60 avg | 105.38 sr | 1 50
Maddy Green – 142 runs | 14.20 avg | 95.30 sr | 0 50s
The Rest of the Top 7 – 321 runs | 10.35 avg | 88.43 sr | 0 50s
As usual, when the top four fire the White Ferns are pretty good. Runs are scored, strike-rates are impressive, nothing to worry about. Not getting a lot of help from the rest of the top seven batters, outside of a couple of scores from Bernadine Bezuidenhout, but they mostly don’t need them... until the top four fail and suddenly there’s absolutely no help for them, no parachute in the middle order. Also note how Sophie Devine may still be up there well above the rest of the team but she’s not exactly keeping pace with Bates/Kerr/Green like she used to. Unsurprisingly, the exact same trends are obvious in ODI cricket...
Batting Numbers In White Ferns ODI Wins (Last Two Years)
Suzie Bates – 478 runs | 68.28 avg | 88.35 sr | 2 100s & 3 50s
Amelia Kerr – 387 runs | 64.50 avg | 92.80 sr | 2 100s & 1 50
Sophie Devine – 308 runs | 38.50 avg | 111.59 sr | 1 100 & 1 50
Maddy Green – 240 runs | 40.00 avg | 71.21 sr | 2 50s
The Rest of the Top 7 – 317 runs | 24.38 avg | 74.94 sr | 1 50
Batting Numbers In White Ferns ODI Losses (Last Two Years)
Amelia Kerr – 276 runs | 46.00 avg | 73.20 sr | 2 50s
Maddy Green – 165 runs | 55.00 avg | 83.75 sr | 1 50
Suzie Bates – 132 runs | 26.40 avg | 62.55 sr | 1 50
Sophie Devine – 110 runs | 22.00 avg | 82.08 sr | 0 50s
The Rest of the Top 7 – 328 runs | 21.87 avg | 67.08 sr | 3 50s
Not quite as drastic there, with Hannah Rowe, Brooke Halliday, and Lauren Down all having scored fifties in losing efforts in the last two years. But still an obvious case of there not being enough help. Kerr and Green have been great in those defaets, albeit with lower strike-rates, yet in ODIs you need more than 2-3 players getting starts. You either need hundreds or you need half your team chipping in.
Right now it’s looking like Suzie Bates is the barometer for the White Ferns. Although we’re only on the batting subject here. The fact that they cannot bowl teams out (just twice in the last 18 completed ODIs) is also a rather significant issue... but an issue for another day. Hopefully Georgia Plimmer smashes some runs against England and the White Ferns can win a few games. The best positive example is that Maddy Green used to be part of the others but since Amy Satterthwaite retired has ascended into her spot amongst the top contributors.
Here’s a tune, have a righteous weekend…