Unphased
Wellington Phoenix elimination, Warriors youngsters impress, Blackcaps mangroves, David Nyika wins again, domestic footy roundup & more
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Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: The Josiah Karapani Debut For Broncos (Rugby League)
Kiwi-NRL Spotlight: Taharoa Takeover With Taine Tuaupiki (Rugby League)
Previewing The Tall Blacks’ 2024 Olympic Qualifying Campaign (Basketball)
Recapping The Tall Ferns Efforts At The 2024 Olympic Qualifiers (Basketball)
2024 T20 World Cup: New Zealand Blackcaps Basics & Notebook (Cricket)
Notes From The Wellington Phoenix’s Semi-Final Defeat vs Melbourne Victory (Football)
Flying Kiwis – May 14 (Football)
27fm Weekly Playlist: May 17 (Music)
Scotty’s Word
Big win for NZ Warriors vs Panthers. Taharoa and Taine Tuaupiki got the Kiwi-NRL Spotlight treatment this morning, while other youngsters also impressed. Stack that on top of the NSW Cup Warriors defeating Panthers as well with 11 lads under 21-years-old in the team of 17.
Ali Leiataua: 21-years-old. Few sloppy tackles and defensive reads (78.5% tackling vs Panthers, 80% tackling in NSW Cup) but always rips in. Powerful runner who had 11 runs - 105m @ 9.54m/run with two linebreaks vs Panthers.
Jacob Laban: 20-years-old. 52 minutes and played a bit at centre when Marcelo Montoya left the field injured, as well as covering for Jackson Ford (injury) and Mitchell Barnett (shuffling between edge/middle). 36 tackles @ 97.3% vs Panthers.
Paul Roache: 25-years-old. Fantastic defence against powerful Panthers (37 tackles @ 92.5%) and crisp distribution. Ran when opportunities came up but the simplicity of getting the footy where it needed to go was helpful. Has flipped between hooker and halves in NSW Cup, adding to how impressive his 68mins vs Panthers were.
NZ Warriors overview
NRL: 13th | 4-6-1
NSW Cup: 6th | 6-4-1
Jersey Flegg: 12th | 2-6-1
NZ Warriors NSW Cup team breakdown vs Panthers
Under 19s: Motu Pasikala, Sio Kali, Jacob Auloa, Kayliss Fatialofa, Leka Halasima
Under 21s: Luke Hanson, Makaia Tafua, Tanner Stowers-Smith, Eddie Ieremia, Toby Crosby, Caleb Laiman
Notable Kiwi-NRL Youngsters From Magic Round
Matthew Timoko: Otahuhu/Ellerslie | Raiders
Deine Mariner: Marist | Broncos
Josiah Karapani: Otahuhu/Pakuranga College | Broncos
Xavier Willison: Whatawhata | Broncos
Raymond Tuiamalo-Vaega: Marist | Sea Eagles
Keano Kini: Northcote | Titans
Erin Clark: Manurewa | Titans
Leo Thompson: Napier Marist | Knights
Kayal Iro: Arorangi/Mt Albert | Sharks
Griffin Neame: Suburbs Greymouth | Cowboys
Taine Tuaupiki: Ngaruawahia | NZW
Ali Leiataua: Papatoetoe | NZW
Paul Roache: Richmond | NZ
Will Warbrick: Ngongotaha | Storm
Alec MacDonald: Auckland | Storm
Solomon Alaimalo: Hornby | Tigers
Connelley Leumuelu: Tangaroa College | Dolphins
Whipped up a big Blackcaps T20 World Cup thing that didn't include Ben Sears ... or Tim Seifert. Seifert's a funky bloke as he has been in the training footage and is a wicket-keeper, so he could get a crack if Devon Conway is out injured etc.
Ben Sears
T20I: 22.3avg/8.1rpo
T20: 20.4avg/7.9rpo
Deep in the mangroves
Already played 17 games, debuted in 2021. Averaged below 23 in last three years of T20I bowling. Notably better when bowling in the second innings...
Bowling first: 27.6avg/8.7rpo
Bowling second: 19.8avg/7.8rpo
Tim Seifert
T20I: 25.3avg/134.7sr
T20: 26.2avg/129.6sr
Deep in the mangroves
Crazy last few years of T20I batting for Seifert...
2020: 50.2avg/140sr
2021: 10.6avg/84sr
2023: 33.4avg/154sr
2024: 19.5avg/116sr
Nathan Smith in County Championship loss vs Surrey:
11ov, 2w @ 5rp | 0 runs | 12ov @ 3.8rpo | 60 runs
Season so far:
212 runs @ 42.4avg/56sr, 3 x 50 | 17w @ 26.5avg/3.2rpo
First-Class career:
27.78avg/48.9sr | 26.89avg/2.8rpo
2023/24 Plunket Shield:
245 runs @ 24.5avg/59sr | 33w @ 17.1avg/2.9rpo
Other Kiwi County Tour lads heading into day four...
Will Young: 0 runs, 14 runs
Tom Bruce: 46 runs, 43 runs
Will Williams: 9 runs, 8ov @ 4.2rpo, 1 run, 3ov @ 3.6rpo
Blair Tickner: 2w @ 2.8rpo, 8 runs, 5ov @ 5.4rpo
Musical jam…
Wildcard’s Notebook
The Wellington Phoenix fell agonisingly short of a spot in the grand final on Saturday night. They did get one truly special moment with Oskar Zawada’s 90+9th minute equaliser to send the game into extra time but they weren’t able to ride the wave from there. To sum it up, the Melbourne Victory handled the occasion brilliantly and that was the difference in an otherwise even match-up. They were unphased by the crowd. They didn’t crumble after the Zawada goal. Scored an excellent strike from outside the area then capitalised on a rare Phoenix set piece defensive lapse in extra time. Meanwhile the Nix simply weren’t able to take their chances in the same way. There’s a whole yarn about that on the website but let’s update Friday’s notes about the club’s biggest ever crowds...
Updated Welly Nix Record Home Attendances
33,297 vs Melbourne Victory (L 2-1 aet) Sky Stadium on 18 May 2024
32,792 vs Newcastle Jets (W 3-1) Sky Stadium on 7 March 2010
24,278 vs Perth Glory (D 1-1) Sky Stadium on 21 February 2010
24,105 vs Western United FC (W 3-0) Sky Stadium, on 22 May 2021
23,648 vs Melbourne Victory (D 1-1) Eden Park on 15 February 2019
22,233 vs Perth Glory (D 2-2) Eden Park on 30 May 2021
Not only is that the Wellington Phoenix’s new record home attendance, but it’s in fact the biggest crowd in the entire A-League this season – and will remain so because the grand final is being hosted by Central Coast whose stadium capacity is smaller. Sydney FC vs Western Sydney drew 28,152 back in November for second place so it’s not even close. Even a Melbourne Derby elimination final only got to 21,358 (sixth overall). This Nix crowd was the season’s best by an excess of five thousand spectators. Incredible. Congrats to all involved.
Now that the Welly Nix season is over, we can also take a closer look at the extent to which the academy was used. I’ve updated this table a few times through the season now here’s the final effort...
Wellington Phoenix Men’s Academy Usage
I haven’t tracked numbers from before Rudan’s year but there’s no way they compare to what the clubs been doing since, as the academy simply was not as substantial then as it has now become. So we’re talking record academy players used, record minutes, record percentage of minutes, record total appearances, record starts, record matchday appearances, equal-record number of debutants... not quite records in terms of goal contributions but that’s only because of Sarpreet Singh. Most of this year’s academy crop were defenders... it was only really Ben Old and Oskar van Hattum doing attacking things. Luke Supyk and Garbriel Sloane-Rodrigues were amongst the debutants though so give it time.
David Nyika got himself a nudge on the Fury vs Usyk undercard on Sunday NZT. Thanks to Joseph Parker he’s got close links with the Fury camp so easy to see how he wrangled that – although Nyika these days is training out of Queensland with coach Noel Thornberry, taking a separate path. He’s also now apparently going by the nickname of “Nice Guy” which is either a reference to a modern cult classic Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe film... or just an accurate description of a bloke who used this bout to raise over $25k in the fight against Malaria.
Nyika spoke about this fight being his audition to get himself onto the Saudi Arabia boxing circuit more regularly. As such, a fourth round technical knockout of Michael Seitz out to work out well for him. 31 year old German with a 12-0 record prior to this fight... but it’s taken Seitz nine years to get those 12 fights in and he’d only gone 39 total rounds. That’s more than Nyika’s 20 rounds but Nyika clearly had the fitness advantage. He clearly had a size and reach advantage too. And as a consequence he also had a mental advantage because Seitz fought a panicked fight, really rushing at DN from the opening bell and trying to throw as many power shots as he could.
That was nothing there that Nyika couldn’t handle. He wore a few hooks to the cheek but never looked hurt or hampered. If anything, he might have been trying to goad Seitz forward in order to open him up to the counter. Nyika boxed confidently. Lots of quick combinations. Probably could have controlled things more at a distance but that didn’t matter too much. Seitz had about one and a half rounds of gas in the tank and then he faded rapidly before Nyika cleaned him out late in the fourth without even needing to land a brutal finishing punch. Nyika moves to 9-0 as a professional and is starting to make a name for himself in the cruiserweight division.
Joseph Parker was there too. He’s fought several times in Riyadh already and was initially scheduled to be on the card for this event until it got delayed, leaving Parker to fight Zhilei Zhang in a rearranged event on the original date. That meant he didn’t get to fight this time around but there was never any doubt that he was going to be around to support his bro Tyson. And since he wasn’t fighting... he instead added further to his resurgent public profile by giving an enjoyable performance on the DAZN broadcast team chatting with Kate Abdo in between fights.
Domestic Football Roundup
Auckland City got into a bit of trouble in their OFC Champions League group. After only drawing 2-2 with Rewa in game one, they were on the brink of being held scoreless against Hekari United in game two... until Liam Gillion popped up with a very late winner for a 1-0 result. They eased past Solomon Warriors 5-0 in the third game to progress unharmed in the end, but there was a spot where that looked frisky.
Without them, the Men’s Northern League continued unabated with Western Springs moving into outright first... though only by one point as they were held 1-1 by Eastern Suburbs. Emiliano Tade scored on 74’ but Jake Mechell equalised on 84’ (continuing on his goal-filled campaign – Mechell is up to 12 already, even though Suburbs as a team have only scored 19). Auckland United might have taken advantage of two teams above them splitting points except that they leaked a last minute equaliser to draw 2-2 with Manurewa. Hector Echague with that crucial goal.
Likewise, East Coast Bays thought they’d won it against West Coast Rangers when Jack Caunter scored on 84’... only to give up an even later penalty which Allan Pearce converted for 2-2. Tauranga City won 1-0 against Hamilton Wanderers thanks to a Joel McMullan goal in the first half. And happy days for Melville United who beat Bay Olympic 1-0 after Thomas Cave scored bright and early. That gets Melville out of the relegation zone.
There were two Friday night games in the Women’s NRFL Premier Division. Auckland United remained first thanks to a powerful second half against Ellerslie. Still 0-0 at half-time, then 1-1 after 65 minutes... but they strolled home in the end with three goals in the space of ten minutes for a 4-1 victory. West Coast Rangers are one point behind them, though they had to work for their 3-2 win over Hibiscus Coast. Conceded in the second minute, then a Shannon Henson brace (with Anelise Karakostas also scoring) helped them get clear, only to concede with twenty left for a nervous ending. But they held on.
On Saturday afternoon, Fencibles kept themselves in third place with a 3-1 win over Hamilton Wanderers. Two more goals for Rosie Missen in there, plus one for Hayley Miller. And in a crucial match between fourth and fifth place, it was Eastern Suburbs who triumphed 2-1 over Western Springs. Sammi Tawharu was amongst the goal-scorers against her old team.
How about a bit of Men’s Central League next? Okay then. Wellington Olympic took a wee while to get going away to Petone after Justin Gulley was sent off midway through the first half. But between the 34th and 51st minutes they scored four times, Hamish Watson with two of the strikes. Eddie Wilkinson then got marched for a second yellow after 55’ to leave the Greeks with only nine men yet they still managed to win 5-1. That lot are joined at the top by Western Suburbs who rallied from a goal down to beat the Phoenix Reserves 2-1, and also Napier City Rovers who were two goals down at the break against North Wellington yet recovered for a 3-2 victory. WO, WS & NCR are all on 21 points, though Suburbs have played an extra game.
With the WeeNix lagging as they integrate a younger wave of players (given how many have moved up to the first team over the past twelve months), it looks like it’ll require a top three finish to make National League and that’s where things are at. However Miramar Rangers, who were the early leaders, are hanging in there on 16 points following a crucial 4-3 win against Waterside Karori. They were 1-0 up after four minutes. They were 3-1 down after 70 minutes. They won it in stoppage time thanks to Tino Contratti’s third goal of the afternoon. Incredible stuff from the Argentine. And then down at the bottom of the ladder there was a seven-goal thriller between Island Bay and Stop Out... with Island Bay taking the points after a 4-3 win.
Not a lot going on in the Women’s Central League, other than a 2-2 draw between Petone and Wellington United. Good game between two WNL contending sides. Waterside Karori didn’t appear to have played. At least there’s no result up yet. And the Women’s Southern League is still in its qualifying phases. Cashmere Tech did win 5-0 against Nelson Suburbs in the Canterbury region so that’s something – they’ve won five out of five scoring 36 times and conceding only once. That’s even better than their Men’s Southern League team who’ve drawn one of their seven matches. 3-0 win for the Cashmere Technical blokes vs Nomads this week. Garbhan Coughlan’s away for a bit which is why they only settled for three. GC’s on 18 goals, next best are Alejandro Steinwascher (Coastal Spirit) and his teammate Lyle Matthysen so let’s see if that’s a big enough headstart. If not he’ll probably be back before the end to bang a few more away.
Christchurch United copped a first half red card for Daniel Meyn but they still won 5-1 away to Selwyn United. Matt Brazier scored a couple of those goals to get up and running for the new season, having been Central League golden boot last year. Joel Stevens also got a couple. Coastal Spirit remain undefeated after seven rounds, beating Dunedin City Royals 2-1 via a late Weston Bell goal. Big 6-1 win for Universities away to FC Twenty11. Nelson Suburbs won 4-2 against Ferrymead Bays. And that’s that for another week.
The ol’ musical jam...