There tends to be an assumption by many (particularly in this thread) that because things are a certain way in Aus they are the are the same in NZ, in some cases they are and in some cases they aren’t.
The state of league is a big case of where things don’t work the same, Union being exclusively a private school sport is another, as is this forever war of having to declare for one or the other or you’re not allowed to be a fan.
I got quite a culture shock seeing first hand the league systems in play when I moved to Sydney, compared to what I’d first hand witnessed being in Hawkes Bay, Manawatu, Taranaki,BOP and Wellington, NZ was in the Stone Age, it was a lightbulb moment of why so many NZ juniors struggle in the Warriors systems- it just simply wasn’t a level playing field. That’s not to say the raw talent isn’t in NZ as it certainly is but NZ league only has a drop in the ocean in terms of resources when it comes to actually find a team to play the sport, coaching, admin, trainers etc. Union in NZ actually exports coaches/trainers/IP in comparison.
There was a poster on the NZ Warriors forum saying in scouting in CHCH for example pre 95 they used to get maybe 3 out of the best 10 Rugby prospects to play league- that number has dropped to approx 0.5.
Whilst it’s great to see things improving there’s still a lot of hard work to do build on what would arguably have been NZ leagues lowest point. It’ll likely take a couple of generations to close the gap, despite what some posters think there isn’t a deluge of Union players that if only they knew league existed (they apparently don’t due to those rich private schoolboys apparently) would flock to league, despite Union having a diminished viewing entertainment product this hasn’t stopped people from wanting to play it just yet. If the Warriors continue their wave and NZ2 gets in then yes you’ll likely see more come over just can’t see it being as dramatic as others do. Said it numerous times before, get into school sports, train better coaches, train better referees and get a half competent administration (not you NZRL) and you’d be well on your way
In terms of credibility I’m not sure how someone who has lived, played league in NZ, goes there regularly, assume likely still has friends and family there, likely has expat friends that also has friends and family in NZ knows more than a guy who alledgedly went there for a holiday once and a guy who gets his info from algorithm skewed TikTok tho