Any word on Taines baby duties? My ideal team this week would have him at the back and CNK at 6. I thought they were both outstanding last week in a good side.
Berry coming back I can live with. A change of halves may bring him into the game a bit more.
Fowards I would have Walker at 13, Ford (is he fit?) and Laban 2nd row,
Barnett and Bunty with Roache.
in the reserves Niukore is a must. Maybe rotate him and Laban in shorter stints? Laban is so new and Niukore is coming back after a break so it would be good not to overcook them.
Tom Ale and Jazz are another must. Bunty seems to wear out quickly. So a bit more game time for the other two.
I don't know about the fourth reserve for hooker cover. Roache to play decent minutes if he's up to it after last week. And cover for him in case he struggles at all. So CHT if he's not covering 6 if Tuapikis on paternity leave. Or Lussick.
But neither of them really does much for me. They're both depth players rather than automatic starters. CHT plays hard and Lussick is probably the more experienced hooker but....
I would actually prefer Roache to play 80 with Walker, CNK, Jazz, and TMM chipping in to ease the load a bit. Which would open the door for
Zyon Maiu’u. And that could be interesting