The 10 young Kiwis who will be worth watching this year Christopher Reive
Has a look at the talented youngsters to keep an eye on in the next 12 months.
Curtis Rona After a three-year stint in the NRL during which he scored 41 tries across 57 matches, the 24-year-old outside back has become one of the latest the jump codes, signing a two-year deal with Super Rugby team the Western Force.
The jump from league to union can often be an interesting one to watch – some thrive after making the jump, while other’s can’t adjust to the 15-man game. How will Rona handle it? Given he was a part of the Western Force’s academy up until making the full-time switch the league in 2009, it’s safe to say he’ll be familiar with his new home, but only time will tell. Tom Bruce For the past two season, Bruce has been a workhorse with the bat for the Central Stags. With a lot of power in his swing, the 25-year-old is at his best in the Twenty20 format, earning a call-up to the Black Caps for the upcoming T20 series against Bangladesh.
With an average of over 40 with bat in hand and a high score of 82no in his first-class T20 career, Bruce has quietly gone about his work. Now he’s been given a chance to display what he can do at the highest level. Grace Harrison Harrison is making the most of what will be a $400,000 scholarship after her four years at St. Lawrence University in New York, breaking school records as an ice hockey goal-tender. Currently in her second year at the school, 19-yearold Harrison, of Auckland, has recorded seven shutouts at the halfway point of the season, a new high for the school.
St. Lawrence are the fourth ranked school in the States in women’s ice hockey, and Harrison is showing that she deserves to be there.
She’s been tagged as the form goal-tender in the league, and in just her second year, she’s still got a lot of hockey to be player. Watch this space. Sam Waardenburg A full scholarship to a Division One basketball college in the States is an achievement in itself, let alone receiving offers from four different schools. Former Rangitoto College student Waardenburg, a 208cm forward, turned down Southern Methodist University in Dallas, the University of Utah and the University of Virginia to commit to the University of Miami.
Last year was a big year for Waadenburg. He travelled to a number of camps around the world, making a strong impression at each, including being named one of the top 10 players at the Adidas Nations Tournament in Los Angeles, an event where Steven Adams also made a name for himself, where he averaged 13.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. 2017 is shaping up to follow suit. Eliza McCartney In the space of two years, Auckland’s Eliza McCartney has gone from 36th equal to seventh in the world pole vault rankings.
With an Olympic Games bronze medal to her name, the 20-year-old is only getting started.
This time last year, the majority of Kiwis wouldn’t have known her name. Now, it’s safe to say that has been reversed.
In 2016, she broke the New Zealand records in both indoor (4.70m) and outdoor (4.80m) pole vaulting.
Her 4.80m performance in Rio, which matched that of her performance at the New Zealand National Championships, was just two centimetres short of a spot in the top five on the ladder, which is a position she is capable of claiming in 2017. Jordie Barrett The youngest Barrett on the professional rugby scene might not have been a household name at the start of the Mitre10 Cup, but he soon changed that.
The 19-year-old was a vital part of Canterbury’s title winning campaign, scoring five tries in his 123 points for the season, converting at an outstanding 83.3 per cent off the tee.
After being called into the All Blacks side as an apprentice player for the team’s end-of-year tour to the States and Europe, Barrett’s star is rising rapidly.
Signing with the Hurricanes for the 2017 Super Rugby season, the fullback could be in line to form a lethal combination with older brother Beauden as the Wellingtonbased franchise look to defend their title. While super Rugby is a different beast to the Mitre10 Cup, Barrett has shown he’s up for it. Kieran Foran One of the many storylines worth following in this year’s NRL competition is how the move to the Warriors works for Kieran Foran.
Signing on with the Parramatta Eels as their marquee player for the 2016 season, Foran played just nine games for the club, missing a lot of time dealing with personal issues and being at the forefront of a gambling scandal.
The NRL are yet to register Foran’s contract with the Auckland club for a variety of reasons including the star half’s mental health, which was cited as the reason for his sudden departure from Parramatta.
However, it hasn’t stopped the Warriors from trying to demonstrate how he’s thriving in Auckland.
If the NRL sign off on his contract, allowing him to take the field for the Warriors next year, Foran will have the chance to prove that he’s still one of the best halves in the game. Kelly Jury Standing at 1.92m, 20-year-old Kelly Jury will be the tallest defender to ever represent New Zealand when she puts on the bib for the Silver Ferns Quad Series campaign, with gets underway in late January.
Jury was part of the competition winning Fast5 Ferns side in 2016 and showed her prowess on the defensive end, altering a number of shots, snatching up rebounds and getting in opposition passing lanes.
She’ll be below Katrina Grant, Anna Harrison and Jane Watson on the defensive depth chart for the Quad Series, but there’s no doubt she’ll get her moment to shine in 2017, be it at international level, or in the national competition. Kalyn Ponga He’s played in just two first-grade NRL matches for the North Queensland Cowboys, but Ponga has already signed a multi-million dollar contract to play his football with the Newcastle Knights from 2018.
The contract, reportedly worth NZ$3.7 million over four years, will make the 19-year-old the highest teenager in the history of the league. With one year left on his contract with the Cowboys, the question remains as to whether he will be given more of a chance in first-grade, or whether he’ll be stuck playing under-20s for one more year. Shane van Gisbergen After 10 years on tour, 2016 saw Shane van Gisbergen claim his first International V8 Supercars Championship. Now, the question lingers – can he defend it?
Finishing 200 points ahead of Australian Jamie Whincup, van Gisbergen fought off the six-time champion to hoist the trophy.
The 27-year-old had come close to the championship win on a number of occasions, with six previous top-10 finishes.
Can van Gisbergen repeat the feat this year?