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U19s State of Origin
Instead of taking an evening off from rugby league and spending time with the missus, I instead spent Thursday night jotting names down on a notepad as the Women’s and Men’s U19s State of Origin sides got into their work.
Given I’ve reported on the NRLW over the last two seasons, I was particularly interested in getting a look at some of the next-gen talent emerging in the women’s game. A few of the girls from last night’s fixture already have NRLW contracts while others may have played themselves into one courtesy of a big performance.
Here’s a quick look at some of the players I’ll be watching with interest over the coming months.
Women’s U19s State of Origin
Losana Lutu (Wests Tigers)
I picked her out 12 months ago before she’d featured in the NRLW and she vindicated that call on Thursday night.
Lutu is the next big thing in the women’s game. She’s a half in a forward’s body and impressed to handle the defensive workload through the middle with the No.13 on her back.
All her physical attributes aside, Lutu’s vision and understanding of the game is what sets her apart right now. She’s one or two plays ahead of everyone else and can pick the defence apart with a pass, kick or a run.
Rilee Jorgansen (Gold Coast Titans)
An absolute mongrel of a defender, Jorgansen is profiling as a long-term NRLW forward.
Short, stocky and fearless, Jorgansen was everywhere on Thursday night for the Maroons. She was named at No.11 but looked best playing through the middle as a lock-forward. She was effective in yardage but made her presence most felt in defence – constantly plugging spaces in the line or shooting out to put on a big shot.
Georgia Hale will start at lock for the Gold Coast but I won’t be surprised to see Jorgansen earn a big minute role in the Titans pack this season.
Matekino Kahukoti-Gray (Gold Coast Titans – development)
The game was less than 10 minutes old before Jase and I had already picked out Kahukoti-Gray.
Her physicality and agression on both sides of the ball impressed in the opening exchanges as she got busy in yardage and led the linespeed in defence. Her kick chase was good and she showed some nice utility value to shuffle between the right edge, middle and left edge as the game went on.
It was Kahukoti-Gray’s strength as a ball carrier that really stood out though. She consistently bent the line with her hit-ups and won the tackle to generate some ruck speed.
Lily Peacock (North Queensland Cowboys – development)
It’s hard to get a good read on prop-forwards at this age level.
Usually, the bigger players will dominate in the junior grades purely thanks to their superior size and strength. Peacock has a bit of that about her, but her intent and legspeed suggests she might be a longer-term prospect in the NRLW.
Whenever the Maroons needed a big carry early in an exit set, Peacock put her hand up. She relished the contact and consistently won her tackles to find her front and earn a quick play-the-ball.
I liked her energy and will back her to feature for the Cowboys this NRLW season.
Emily Bella (unsigned)
Another unsigned star with the NRLW season just a week away.
Bella completly changed the context of the game when coming on midway through the second half. She has nice deception from behind the ruck and is clearly a running dummy-half as demonstrated by a clever burrowing try in good-ball.
Despite her smaller size, Bella’s physicality impressed. She was aggressive in defence and not afraid to take the line on herself.
There are a number of good hookers in the NRLW already but Bella will add herself to that list sooner rather than later.
Lily-Rose Kolc (Gold Coast Titans – development)
She didn’t have a highlight moment but I was impressed with Kolc’s game management and service from behind the ruck.
She consistently took the right option in yardage, whether passing off the ground or engaging the markers to bring a forward onto the ball. She was also sound in defence, getting through plenty of clean-up work and making her one-on-one’s.
Chloe Jackson (unsigned)
Another without a highlight reel moment, Jackson was a quiet achiever for the Blues on the right edge.
Standing just 165cm tall and weighing in at 71kgs, Jackson doesn’t have the tackle busting ability of some other edge forwards in the NRLW. What she lacks in size and power though, she makes up for in technique.
I dont have access to individual stats but I’d guess Jackson came close to topping the tackle count for this game. She was a constant defensive presence on the Blues right edge and led the line speed when NSW were locking in.
I’m expecting her to feature in the NRLW at some point, maybe as a lock-forward.
Mens U19’s State of Origin
Ethan Strange (Canberra Raiders)
Stats aren’t everything in rugby league but the numbers Strange put up in this one go a long way to highlighting his influence on the result.
New South Wales finished with six tries on Thurday night and had Strange to thank for five of them.
His footwork and speed caused nightmares for the Maroons defence and he also displayed good skill to provide the final pass for tries to Ethan Sanders and Ethan Ferguson.
Ethan Sanders (Parramatta Eels)
A genuine halfback with a superb kicking game, Sanders is profiling as the guy to replace Mitchell Moses at Parramatta… but will he wait that long?
He looks the goods right now and will demand immediate interest from rival NRL clubs off this performance.
Ethan Ferguson (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
Produced a superb diving effort in the corner to score in the first half, before doing this as the clock wound down:
The skill, the balance, the power… remind you of anyone?
He’s the cousin of Latrell Mitchell, who had a leading role in luring him to South Sydney this season.
Ferguson still has some defensive issues to sort out but his attacking upside is there to see.
Damon Marshall (Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs)
Absolutely loved what I saw from Marshall. He dominated the physical battle through the middle, tackling everything that moved and bending the line with every carry.
He’s currently at the Bulldogs and will push for an NRL debut early next season.
Josh Feledy (Wests Tigers)
The only thing standing in the way of an NRL career for Josh Feledy is Josh himself.
He’s a tackle busting machine in the mould of Jesse Ramien and came up with some strong defensive reads, too.
He’s a big boy for an outside back but if he can get his conditioning and preperation right he looks a genuine first-grade prospect.
Mutua Brown (Central Queensland Capras)
Currently plying his trade in the Queensland Mal Meninga Cup, Brown is on a trajectory to the NRL. He had a tough night out the back of a beaten Maroons forward pack but Brown’s involvements seriously impressed.
He was always in the frame and came up with a number of special plays on kick returns. His effort areas were superb and he competed on everything.
Myles Martin (Newcastle Knights)
He’s been earmarked as the next Jake Trbojevic and he lived up to the hype on Thursday night. Martin was a defensive presence through the middle, consistently leading the line speed and winning most – if not all – of his tackles.
He also offered a nice pass option from pivot – something the Newcastle Knights could use in their current pack…
Head Noise – What’s living rent free in my head this week?
Will Smith
He was a standout in the Tigers pre-season trials but it took until NRL Round 19 for Smith to feature in the regular season.
He had some positive involvements in that loss to the Sharks, and I’m keen to see how he builds on that this weekend.
Smith and Tommy Talau combined nicely last week to target the spaces around Nicho Hynes.
Smith looks good in these actions; skipping across the line using his footwork to engage specific defenders. In this action, he doesn’t quite turn Hynes out which sees Talau brought down back on the inside.
They got it right later in the piece though.
Talau runs a good outside-in line and Smith finds him with a lovely pass. Note who the target was – there’s Hynes again, filling in at centre this time and getting caught out with a crisp face ball.
I’m keen to see how Smith and Talau combine tonight against the Knights.
Victor Radley & Nelson Asofa-Solomona
If Melbourne and Sydney roll out as named on Saturday night, the one-on-one battle between Radley and Asofa-Solomona will be worth the price of admission, alone.
I wouldn’t often back a smaller body against Big NAS, but this is Radley we’re talking about.
He’s a fearless defender – sometimes to his own detriment – and won’t shirk his responsibilities with Asofa-Solomona coming at him.
Providing he doesn’t get ruled out via a HIA, watching Radley go toe-to-toe with Big NAS will be a highlight of NRL Round 20.
Blake Wilson & Jacob Kiraz
I’ve liked what I’ve seen from Wilson in the top grade and he deserves to hold his spot this week. It means Kiraz moves into the centres which, on paper, is a move he profiles well for.
Kiraz has great footwork and is deceptively strong in contact. He’s got an offload in him and can lay a lead line or sweep out the back of shape. He’s got the skillset and physical attributes to make it in the centres but it’s his defensive reads and decision making that I’m interested in.
He’s diving right into the deep end this week with Herbie Farnworth opposite him on Friday night for the Broncos. He doesn’t need to win that individual battle to give us a better idea of Kiraz’s long-term prospects in the centres.
RLW Percentage Play – NRL Round 20
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North Queensland Cowboys v Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles (Saturday)