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2023 - Oceania Tri-Nations (Pacific Championship)

jim_57

Moderator
Staff member
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4,602
Correct. This change happened a few years ago.
I was more surprised that he can move from Wales as his Tier 2 country to Tonga. His Tier 1 country remains as Australia.

Wong has also gone from Fiji to Tonga. Disappointing IMO.

Kiwis backline might be the weakest out of the 3 nations tbh. Foward pack is solid. Papali'is been quiet this season, that could be due to the Tigers poor season and the Kiwis bench isn't that strong compared to the kangaroos and Samoa. Kiwis have to rely heavily on the halves, something Samoa lacks.

Maybe just but they hardly have any glaring weaknesses at full strength either. Manu, Timoko, Isaako etc will hold their own against any of their opposing players.
 

Jim from Oz

Juniors
Messages
748
1 Stephen Critchon
2 Brian To'o
3 Izack Tago
4 Murray Taulagi
5 Greg Marzhew
6 Karl Oloapu
7 Daejarn Asi
8 Junior Paulo
9 Gordon Chan Kum Tong
10 Royce Hunt
11 Heilum Luki
12 Conelly Lemuelu
13 Stefano Utoikamanu

14 Sua Faalogo
15 Terell May
16 Spencer Leniu
17 Luciano Leilua
What happened to Joseph Sua’ali’i ?

Is he injured or somehow unavailable?
 
Messages
12,702
Tbh there's a couple players in the Kiwis squad I've never seen play. We are really scraping. I'm very disappointed. Madge must have made a thousand calls in the past week.

Warbrick? Simonsson? Niukore? Reimis? Sorenson? Riki? What's up with all these guys? Even Nikorima as dummy half cover?
 

Clarkent

Juniors
Messages
828
Tbh there's a couple players in the Kiwis squad I've never seen play. We are really scraping. I'm very disappointed. Madge must have made a thousand calls in the past week.

Warbrick? Simonsson? Niukore? Reimis? Sorenson? Riki? What's up with all these guys? Even Nikorima as dummy half cover?
* SJ - made himself unavailable
* Marata Niukore - injured
* Dallin Watene-Zelezniak - injured/surgery/Tonga
* Brandon Smith- injured/surgery
* Jared Waerea-Hargreaves- suspended
* Seb Kris - suspended
* Scotty Sorensen - getting married
* Kodi Nikorima - best man at brother’s wedding
* Te Maire Martin - injured
* Jeremy Marshall - King - injured
* Jordan Riki - injured/surgery
 

jim_57

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
4,602
* SJ - made himself unavailable
* Marata Niukore - injured
* Dallin Watene-Zelezniak - injured/surgery/Tonga
* Brandon Smith- injured/surgery
* Jared Waerea-Hargreaves- suspended
* Seb Kris - suspended
* Scotty Sorensen - getting married
* Kodi Nikorima - best man at brother’s wedding
* Te Maire Martin - injured
* Jeremy Marshall - King - injured
* Jordan Riki - injured/surgery

* SJ - made himself unavailable
* Marata Niukore - injured
* Dallin Watene-Zelezniak - injured/surgery/Tonga
* Brandon Smith- injured/surgery
* Jared Waerea-Hargreaves- suspended
* Seb Kris - suspended
* Scotty Sorensen - getting married
* Kodi Nikorima - best man at brother’s wedding
* Te Maire Martin - injured
* Jeremy Marshall - King - injured
* Jordan Riki - injured/surgery

Sorensen would have known he’d be odds on to be picked for the Kiwis, surely he could have planned it for the actual off-season if he had any interest in playing Internationals. Nikorima sitting out a whole 4 week tournament to be best man for a day?

To be honest seems like a lot of excuses barely better than “CBF” this year. RL certainly hasn’t helped itself though, these tournaments were slapped together as an afterthought only a couple months ago in a half arsed format.
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,112
Wong has also gone from Fiji to Tonga. Disappointing IMO.



Maybe just but they hardly have any glaring weaknesses at full strength either. Manu, Timoko, Isaako etc will hold their own against any of their opposing players.
Not content with stealing from NZ now the filthy Tongans are stealing from the other PIs too. Is there no lengths they will go to in their quest for glory?

Also agree that our backline looks ok. Hughes, Brown/Foran, Manu, Timoko, Isaako, Mulitalo, CNK. They just can't get injured at any stage.

Also agree Sorensen and Nikorima's reasons for being unavailable are a bit shit.
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,112
Kiwis backline might be the weakest out of the 3 nations tbh.
Only if halves aren't included, you lot are running out with Asi and a teenager, not even comparable to Hughes and Brown. Actually even then I'd take our two Samoan heritage wingers as a pair over your pair, and Manu is better than both your centres (assuming we play him at centre).
 

Clarkent

Juniors
Messages
828
Only if halves aren't included, you lot are running out with Asi and a teenager, not even comparable to Hughes and Brown. Actually even then I'd take our two Samoan heritage wingers as a pair over your pair, and Manu is better than both your centres (assuming we play him at centre).
Chill like I said in my post the Kiwis halves are definitely better and it's where Toa Samoa lacks lol love Isaako and Mulitalo but they ain't better than To'o and Taulagi. Manu vs Critta is evenly matched I'm a big fan of Manu and Tago vs Timoko ain't a contest. Tago is definitely better. CNK had a great season for the warriors too. It should be a great contest but let's see how the 10 heritage Samoans do in the Kiwis squad 😉
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,112
Chill like I said in my post the Kiwis halves are definitely better and it's where Toa Samoa lacks lol love Isaako and Mulitalo but they ain't better than To'o and Taulagi. Manu vs Critta is evenly matched I'm a big fan of Manu and Tago vs Timoko ain't a contest. Tago is definitely better. CNK had a great season for the warriors too. It should be a great contest but let's see how the 10 heritage Samoans do in the Kiwis squad 😉
We just call them NZers. ;) And obviously in games not involving the Kiwis I'll enjoy watching the 7 or 8 NZers on the Samoan team in matches.

I'm chill, just a bit of banter pointing out that I don't agree with you regarding the strengths of our backlines.

Also, you were correct about old man Levi coming back to the Kiwis. :thumbup_tone5:
 

Clarkent

Juniors
Messages
828
We just call them NZers. ;) And obviously in games not involving the Kiwis I'll enjoy watching the 7 or 8 NZers on the Samoan team in matches.

I'm chill, just a bit of banter pointing out that I don't agree with you regarding the strengths of our backlines.

Also, you were correct about old man Levi coming back to the Kiwis. :thumbup_tone5:
Levi is the one player I'm gutted that's not in the Samoan team because his game suits the Samoan team so well. Nu Brown surprised me tho but I get why he chose the Kiwis, he's off contract and it's his only chance to tick this off his bucket list. I don't think he'll be back in the NRL.

The kiwi halves tho didn't click at all during the last world cup it was mostly the forward pack that carried the Kiwis to most of those games. The Kiwis backline struggled against fiji and the kangaroos last year too. What do you think of the Kiwis bench? NAS is probably the only one on that bench that has some firepower.

In saying that Kiwis at home are different beast. I hope they beat the kangaroos and not the samoan team 😉
 

Clarkent

Juniors
Messages
828
We just call them NZers. ;) And obviously in games not involving the Kiwis I'll enjoy watching the 7 or 8 NZers on the Samoan team in matches.

I'm chill, just a bit of banter pointing out that I don't agree with you regarding the strengths of our backlines.

Also, you were correct about old man Levi coming back to the Kiwis. :thumbup_tone5:
I don't understand how the samoan team didn't pick him up when we only have one who's basically a rookie. But also feel for him with the fans hounding him with messages the poor bloke
 

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Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,112
I don't understand how the samoan team didn't pick him up when we only have one who's basically a rookie. But also feel for him with the fans hounding him with messages the poor bloke
Sheesh, I didn't know we could hound players like that. DWZ better watch out. ;)

But, to be serious, dumb of Samoan coaches not to pick him, but dumb of fans to give him so much shit he has to post an explanation.

Also, I always thought Brown was Australian-Samoan. I wonder if he's related to Dylan and he convinced him?
 

Clarkent

Juniors
Messages
828
Sheesh, I didn't know we could hound players like that. DWZ better watch out. ;)

But, to be serious, dumb of Samoan coaches not to pick him, but dumb of fans to give him so much shit he has to post an explanation.

Also, I always thought Brown was Australian-Samoan. I wonder if he's related to Dylan and he convinced him?
Is Danny Levi the first player that a Tier 2 nation didn't want and he was picked up by a tier 1 nation straight after? 😉
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,112
Brown posted that he had to choose out of Samoa or Kiwis on his Instagram
Really? I had a look on his instagram but didn't see the post. TBF I probably don't know how to work instagram properly.

Did discover he's Chch born and raised, not sure why I thought he was an Aussie.
 

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