Once was a Warrior:
Can Southland do the unthinkable?
The bookies sure as heck aren’t giving the Stags a sniff, relegating them to $10.00 outsiders and listing the Mooloo men as white-hot $1.03 favourites.
Given Southland have lost 17 straight matches, and all six losses this season have been by at least 16 points, those odds shouldn’t prompt anyone to get on the blower to demand answers.
That said, nobody gave Waikato a chance against Taranaki in the lead up to their Shield heist earlier this season, and you can bet coach Jono Gibbes’ mob won’t come out flat in front of their home fans in Hamilton.
After all, after Southland, they’re just a win – against Otago – away from securing the Log o’ Wood for the summer.
Here’s a question for Stags fans: Will all be forgiven if the Shield is headed for Invercargill come Saturday night?
How good is Will Jordan?
Tasman are loaded with quality players, but it’s their fullback who pops up whenever you flick a Mako game on.
There’s long been big wraps on the former Christchurch Boys’ High School star, who is putting together an even better campaign than his impressive rookie season a year ago.
Having been sidelined by concussion during his maiden season of Super Rugby with the Crusaders this year, Jordan is tied for most tries (six), second for metres gained (671), and second for defenders beaten (33). The 20-yearold runs fantastic lines, is sound under the high ball and is an elusive runner who effortlessly beats defenders with his turn of pace.
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson will be itching to utilise his silky skillset next year. The question is: at whose expense?
Who else is lighting up the competition?
It’s hard to go past Waikato wing Sevu Reece, a huge reason why the Mooloos have won four straight matches and are the Ranfurly Shield holders. Reece has touched down five times, leads the competition in offloads (18) and defenders beaten (47) – 14 more than Tasman’s Will Jordan.
Wellington’s Wes Goosen, who has notched more metres (759) than any other player, deserves a mention, as does Otago’s Jona Nareki and Northland’s Rene Ranger.
In the forwards, Canterbury lock Luke Romano has been near his brutal best for the reigning champions, while Dylan Nel (Otago), Mitchell Jacobson (Waikato), Andrew Makalio (Tasman), Akira Ioane (Auckland) and Tom Robinson (Northland) have also been immense.
Is Michael Cheika’s first-five playing for Northland?
Bernard Foley is too inconsistent and surely the Wallabies’ loss to Argentina on September 15 ended the Kurtley Beale experiment.
Could Jack Debreczeni, an Auckland-born former Australian schools representative, be the long-term answer to coach Michael Cheika’s search for a quality pivot?
It’s a stretch, but the depth-starved Wallabies sure could do worse than the Melbourne Rebels pivot, who is shining for the resurgent Taniwha in the championship section of the NPC.
Debreczeni possesses a decent kicking game, and a running game which suits the expansive and ever-entertaining style of Northland who are playing some sneaky good code.
What’s the game of the round?
Forget the Ranfurly Shield match. If you’re after a quality fixture, tune into Wellington’s home match against Tasman on Saturday.
While the top-four premiership sides have pulled clear of the the rest of the pack, just one competition point separates second-placed Tasman from the third-placed hosts on the log.
Another big game is Taranaki’s home fixture against North Harbour. The loser will be staring down the barrel of relegation. Mason Lino’s time with the Warriors is over, with the halfback agreeing terms with the Knights, while Bunty Afoa has signed a contract extension and Nathan Cayless has joined the club.
It is believed Lino will sign a twoyear deal with the Newcastle based club.
Lino was contracted to the club for 2019, but the Warriors wouldn’t guarantee him anything beyond that, so allowed him to look elsewhere.
Knights coach Nathan Brown, like many, has admired how Lino performed this year when filling in for either Blake Green and Shaun Johnson and were willing to offer him a longer term contract.
Lino has served as a hard-working understudy at the Warriors since making his debut for the Warriors in 2015. However, the Warriors are looking elsewhere for the future and it’s likely they will sign another player in the halves or look for the promising