NRLW 2025 Warriors NRLW Discussion

[Teets]

I could type that I hope fans get along to their games but know better.

Seems organizers have finally learned their lesson in Hamilton and have only opened the stand opposite the hard camera.

Looking at the tickets available in the sections they've opened it looks like the stands won't be completely empty thankfully.

 

[tyrael]

Anyone in the know able to break down each player. I would like to get into this team but only know Michaela Brake. A mini break down is all I want.

E.g.
2 Brake - fast, tough, star sevens player for black ferns

 

[sup42]

Ignore the header, the Warriors open the interview.


View: https://youtu.be/btAgPzublX8?si=GkHwoLPrf5j1p6sN

 

[sup42]

Anyone in the know able to break down each player. I would like to get into this team but only know Michaela Brake. A mini break down is all I want.

E.g.
2 Brake - fast, tough, star sevens player for black ferns

That will be hard.

I hope someone from the club or NZRL womens league can help there.

I do wonder about having their first game and return to the comp away.

You wonder what would have happened had the NRL and Warriors agreed to have a home game during the bye (Friday night mega promoted by the Warriors and NRL - the return).

They could have made this free for all and really banked on the up the WAHS movement looking for a game this week.

I would have held the Flegg, NSW cup as curtain Raisers to the NRLW....welcome home.....and used the Broncos as a knock to the 95érs

 

[tyrael]

Take everything I say with a grain of salt as I'm just looking at websites and writing down what I glean/infer.
Also when I say big, please don't think I am fat shaming women. It's purely in a league context.
Number after their name is how many NRLW games they have played.

Overall the side is really lacking experience. I am wondering what the club has done to make sure that these wahine are ready for the big lights.
43 is the most anyone has played according to wikipedia which gives you an indication how inexperienced this team is in NRLW.
However, the coach Ron Griffiths is 16-2 with the Knights, so hopefully he can transfer that winning experience over.


1 Apii Nicholls (c) - 28, Looks big, decent running game, has a kicking game, has half the caps of the entire team.
2 Michaela Brake - 0, Fast, Tough, Rugby Sevens Star. Might be better at centre?
3 Tysha Ikenasio - 0, played sevens rugby in Japan, black ferns sevens
4 Emmanita Paki - 4, played for knights
5 Payton Takimoana - 0, 76kgs looks huge for backline where most are 65-68kgs. Maybe W version of Manu.
6 Patricia Maliepo - 0, 82kgs, Black Ferns, helped Blues win 2 titles in a row, played 10, 12 for Union, damaging ball runner.
7 Emily Curtain - 9, played for Eels and Tigers. Looks tough.
8 Harata Butler - 12, looks like our enforcer at 97kgs but short, played for cows and sharks. Hopefully worked on tackle technique as lots of missed tackles
9 Capri Paekau - 5, played for Eels, tall for a woman's rake, 175cm but only 65kgs.
10 Lavinia Kitai - 0, Cook Island international, 175cm, 85kg
11 Shakira Baker - 0, 172cm, 92kg, Fullback,mid field in NPC. Black Fern,Black Fern 7's. Tackle buster. Versatile.
12 Kaiyah Atai - 0, Played once for Cook Island Moana
13 Laishon Albert-Jones, - 20, a Kiwi Ferns international, with two seasons of NRLW. Big body at 90kg.

14 Lydia Tura-Quedley - 0, Halfback, Maybe 9 cover. 65kg, 163cm, Partner is Paul Roache. Mostly union background.
15 Maarire Puketapu - 0, 2nd row, 167cm, 79kg, Softball and League background
16 Ashlee Matapo - 0, 2nd row, 18 years old, no data
17 Matekino Gray - 4, 2nd row, 175cm, 75kg

The interchange is really weird, but maybe it's lack of data. No way there is no prop cover....

 

[tajhay]

Take everything I say with a grain of salt as I'm just looking at websites and writing down what I glean/infer.
Also when I say big, please don't think I am fat shaming women. It's purely in a league context.
Number after their name is how many NRLW games they have played.

Overall the side is really lacking experience. I am wondering what the club has done to make sure that these wahine are ready for the big lights.
43 is the most anyone has played according to wikipedia which gives you an indication how inexperienced this team is in NRLW.
However, the coach Ron Griffiths is 16-2 with the Knights, so hopefully he can transfer that winning experience over.


1 Apii Nicholls (c) - 28, Looks big, decent running game, has a kicking game, has half the caps of the entire team.
2 Michaela Brake - 0, Fast, Tough, Rugby Sevens Star. Might be better at centre?
3 Tysha Ikenasio - 0, played sevens rugby in Japan, black ferns sevens
4 Emmanita Paki - 4, played for knights
5 Payton Takimoana - 0, 76kgs looks huge for backline where most are 65-68kgs. Maybe W version of Manu.
6 Patricia Maliepo - 0, 82kgs, Black Ferns, helped Blues win 2 titles in a row, played 10, 12 for Union, damaging ball runner.
7 Emily Curtain - 9, played for Eels and Tigers. Looks tough.
8 Harata Butler - 12, looks like our enforcer at 97kgs but short, played for cows and sharks. Hopefully worked on tackle technique as lots of missed tackles
9 Capri Paekau - 5, played for Eels, tall for a woman's rake, 175cm but only 65kgs.
10 Lavinia Kitai - 0, Cook Island international, 175cm, 85kg
11 Shakira Baker - 0, 172cm, 92kg, from pictures and stats, looks like she should be prop and Kitai should be 2nd row.... Black Fern in 2016
12 Kaiyah Atai - 0, Played once for Cook Island Moana
13 Laishon Albert-Jones, - 20, a Kiwi Ferns international, with two seasons of NRLW. Big body at 90kg.

14 Lydia Tura-Quedley - 0, Halfback, Maybe 9 cover. 65kg, 163cm, Partner is Paul Roache. Mostly union background.
15 Maarire Puketapu - 0, 2nd row, 167cm, 79kg, Softball and League background
16 Ashlee Matapo - 0, 2nd row, 18 years old, no data
17 Matekino Gray - 4, 2nd row, 175cm, 75kg

The interchange is really weird, but maybe it's lack of data. No way there is no prop cover....

In a way its great that the mens team have a bye this weekend so we can all get behind the girls and give them the exposure they deserve.

 

[WHB]

Take everything I say with a grain of salt as I'm just looking at websites and writing down what I glean/infer.
Also when I say big, please don't think I am fat shaming women. It's purely in a league context.
Number after their name is how many NRLW games they have played.

Overall the side is really lacking experience. I am wondering what the club has done to make sure that these wahine are ready for the big lights.
43 is the most anyone has played according to wikipedia which gives you an indication how inexperienced this team is in NRLW.
However, the coach Ron Griffiths is 16-2 with the Knights, so hopefully he can transfer that winning experience over.


1 Apii Nicholls (c) - 28, Looks big, decent running game, has a kicking game, has half the caps of the entire team.
2 Michaela Brake - 0, Fast, Tough, Rugby Sevens Star. Might be better at centre?
3 Tysha Ikenasio - 0, played sevens rugby in Japan, black ferns sevens
4 Emmanita Paki - 4, played for knights
5 Payton Takimoana - 0, 76kgs looks huge for backline where most are 65-68kgs. Maybe W version of Manu.
6 Patricia Maliepo - 0, 82kgs, Black Ferns, helped Blues win 2 titles in a row, played 10, 12 for Union, damaging ball runner.
7 Emily Curtain - 9, played for Eels and Tigers. Looks tough.
8 Harata Butler - 12, looks like our enforcer at 97kgs but short, played for cows and sharks. Hopefully worked on tackle technique as lots of missed tackles
9 Capri Paekau - 5, played for Eels, tall for a woman's rake, 175cm but only 65kgs.
10 Lavinia Kitai - 0, Cook Island international, 175cm, 85kg
11 Shakira Baker - 0, 172cm, 92kg, from pictures and stats, looks like she should be prop and Kitai should be 2nd row.... Black Fern in 2016
12 Kaiyah Atai - 0, Played once for Cook Island Moana
13 Laishon Albert-Jones, - 20, a Kiwi Ferns international, with two seasons of NRLW. Big body at 90kg.

14 Lydia Tura-Quedley - 0, Halfback, Maybe 9 cover. 65kg, 163cm, Partner is Paul Roache. Mostly union background.
15 Maarire Puketapu - 0, 2nd row, 167cm, 79kg, Softball and League background
16 Ashlee Matapo - 0, 2nd row, 18 years old, no data
17 Matekino Gray - 4, 2nd row, 175cm, 75kg

The interchange is really weird, but maybe it's lack of data. No way there is no prop cover....

11 Shakira Baker - Fullback,mid field in NPC. Black Fern,Black Fern 7's. Tackle buster. Versatile.

 

[tyrael]

11 Shakira Baker - Fullback,mid field in NPC. Black Fern,Black Fern 7's. Tackle buster. Versatile.

updated!

 

[sup42]

Overall the side is really lacking experience. I am wondering what the club has done to make sure that these wahine are ready for the big lights.

Great post, excuse the editing to speak to this important concern most Warriors fans probably aren't totally aware of.

To your question, what have the club done to make sure they are ready.....no coach on earth has the right to get this lot ready in time to match the standard of the games in todays NRLW (which is light years ahead of the comp the Warriors last struggled in).

But hey, we hired a top coach, so that is a start and you would expect to see their impact/making us competitive next year.

Man watching the Try line defence and kicking games of the four sides that have played so far, our girls are in for a massive shock to the system.

Our problems when we were in the comp last time were no kicking game, amateur spine play compared to the top sides, clunkiness and doing everything inaccurately and far too slowly. And that is just when we had the ball.

When we are working off the ball, we will get slaughtered technically, I mean how can having six Union players work in the intricacies of line formation, line speed, first contact positioning, the grapple, the pinning of the player, the getting up off the ground within the infringement window of seconds?

To have any chance I think we needed the obvious, two top halves, a top hooker, and a fullback, a strike Center, and a rampaging set of Props, some defensive backrowers.....THEN add six union players.

I get why we have all these Rugby players though, it addresses the fact that our League talent pool is not professional in any sense of the word.

This is gonna be like making a new mens team in the NRL and bringing in six Grid Iron players and expecting the Warriors to compete.

Still, I am one hundred percent behind our team, behind the club, behind the concept, and behind everything they are doing.

I can see why we have the issues we have and it is no fault of the Warriors.

I didn't mean to single out the Union players as the problem, they are not in of themselves what is at issue, most of this team have either never played pro league or have not played it in years.

We will cop a lot of hidings is the most realistic run down I can give I recon.

 

[WHB]

Great post, excuse the editing to speak to this important concern most Warriors fans probably aren't totally aware of.

To your question, what have the club done to make sure they are ready.....no coach on earth has the right to get this lot ready in time to match the standard of the games in todays NRLW (which is light years ahead of the comp the Warriors last struggled in).

But hey, we hired a top coach, so that is a start and you would expect to see their impact/making us competitive next year.

Man watching the Try line defence and kicking games of the four sides that have played so far, our girls are in for a massive shock to the system.

Our problems when we were in the comp last time were no kicking game, amateur spine play compared to the top sides, clunkiness and doing everything inaccurately and far too slowly. And that is just when we had the ball.

When we are working off the ball, we will get slaughtered technically, I mean how can having six Union players work in the intricacies of line formation, line speed, first contact positioning, the grapple, the pinning of the player, the getting up off the ground within the infringement window of seconds?

To have any chance I think we needed the obvious, two top halves, a top hooker, and a fullback, a strike Center, and a rampaging set of Props, some defensive backrowers.....THEN add six union players.

I get why we have all these Rugby players though, it addresses the fact that our League talent pool is not professional in any sense of the word.

This is gonna be like making a new mens team in the NRL and bringing in six Grid Iron players and expecting the Warriors to compete.

Still, I am one hundred percent behind our team, behind the club, behind the concept, and behind everything they are doing.

I can see why we have the issues we have and it is no fault of the Warriors.

I didn't mean to single out the Union players as the problem, they are not in of themselves what is at issue, most of this team have either never played pro league or have not played it in years.

We will cop a lot of hidings is the most realistic run down I can give I recon.

Experience,you can't do well without it.

My face was going to get smashed in when I said they going to get some good ass whippings from some hearty Wah whanau.

It's exciting,but the reality is 3/4 of the team haven't played at this level.

I myself expect the 7's honeys to do better than expected.
There game is played at ferocious speed where any wrong decision is a bad one.
They count numbers on defence like touch so don't expect them to be lost on D.
Getting off the ground and back in line should be easy for them???
But still,experience is the missing ingredient,can't do well without it.

Hope young Maliepo can find her niche in the game quickly.
She is a talent who can make things look easy for a half.

All the best to our Wahines,be watching every game.
Shock the world.

 

[sup42]

Experience,you can't do well without it.

My face was going to get smashed in when I said they going to get some good ass whippings from some hearty Wah whanau.

It's exciting,but the reality is 3/4 of the team haven't played at this level.

I myself expect the 7's honeys to do better than expected.
There game is played at ferocious speed where any wrong decision is a bad one.
They count numbers on defence like touch so don't expect them to be lost on D.
Getting off the ground and back in line should be easy for them???
But still,experience is the missing ingredient,can't do well without it.

Hope young Maliepo can find her niche in the game quickly.
She is a talent who can make things look easy for a half.

All the best to our Wahines,be watching every game.
Shock the world.

Shock the world indeed.

You never know.

Anything could happen.

Don't worry this is not gonna be one of those weird Haiku posts (I think I started that trend years ago oops).

As always, one of the hardest things to get right will be team cohesion in spacing, timing, both sides of the ball, learning to form partnerships then grids, then the whole organism moving with one brain. That usually takes a year or three, our Mens NRL side are still trying to figure it out.....

 

[~Navigator~]

A good read, about what these ladies day as a Nrlw football player is like.
NZ Warriors wahine juggle real-life challenges with NRLW footy dreams | RNZ News

NZ Warriors wahine juggle real-life challenges with NRLW footy dreams

Most of the squad returning to the NRLW this weekend also have full-time jobs and families to tend to away from the field.

www.rnz.co.nz