Last weekend was Magic Round and it didn’t let the name down. What an outstanding weekend of footy at the best rugby league venue in the world.
Sure, Brisbane dished up a few weather changes, but I doubt many left because it was raining during a few of the games.
The on-field action was just that – action – and with every seat sold out, the NRL will be smiling.
The final game on Sunday, finishing with the Raiders defeating the red-hot Storm 20-18, I think was the icing on the cake. Ricky Stuart’s Raiders are looking very much one of the teams that could be destined to play in this years Grand Final.
Big call I know, but when you consider how well balanced his team is, they will cause many other clubs plenty of heartaches before the season is done. At the other end of the expectation table sit the Broncos, who are just so hard to get a read on.
There wouldn’t be a coach in the NRL that wouldn’t like a squad with the talent oozing through its ranks like the once-mighty Brisbane team. But, and it’s a big but, what the heck is going on there?
And in the meantime, the men from the “land of the long white cloud” are simply cruising through any obstacle in their way. Coach Andrew Webster has done an outstanding job with the Warriors, and what about the support they had in the Stadium on Saturday night against North Queensland. It sounded like a home game at Auckland.
Like Brisbane were many years ago, the Warriors are on the edge of becoming what could be a juggernaut.
A recent survey stated that across the NRL competition, 45 per cent of the players identified as Pacifica or Māori.
This is a massive number and it gives an indication of the talent that is mainly channelled to the NRL, through New Zealand.
Did I say “could” become a juggernaut?
That is just one of the reasons there should be a second team in the NRL from New Zealand.
