International RL wrap: Jillaroos coach faces awkward selection dilemma, NRL veteran’s career-saving switch
John Bateman produced a brain explosion of the highest order as he fights for his NRL career, while Jillaroos coach Brad Donald is facing a selection dilemma. Seven things we learned over the weekend of international footy.
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The international game is thriving.
With the Pacific Championships, the Pacific Cup and England and Samoa satiating our rugby league cravings, the storylines are developing by the game.
Heading into another weekend of action across the globe, we take a look at seven things we learned out of week two of the men’s and women’s internationals.
TIME FOR MILNE TO SWITCH
Taane Milne has played a handful of games in the second row but now could be the time for a permanent switch to revive his NRL career.
The off-contract winger showed just how effective he is moving in from the edge during a dominant 56-6 win for Fiji over Cook Islands on Saturday.
Milne was sensational, clocking up 244 running metres, 83 post-contact metres, three tackle breaks, three offloads, a line break, two linebreak assists and a try assist as well as kicking seven from seven goals in the mammoth win.
The 29-year-old is currently without a club for 2025 after spending the past four seasons with South Sydney, but there is talent there for a club willing to take a punt and shift him to the forwards.
KIWIS NEED HALVES TWEAK
One of the biggest takeaways from the weekend is just how much more international footy we need on our screens.
The Kiwis had their first run of the Pacific Championships against Australia, but would have done well with an earlier warm up game before facing the rugby league juggernauts.
It would have given them time to finalise combinations given they don’t have more opportunities like State of Origin or even a PM’s XIII game to get familiar with each other before the big end of year internationals.
With Jahrome Hughes sidelined, it became clear throughout their loss to the Kangaroos they need more direction in the halves than either Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad or Shaun Johnson can give.
Those kinks should be sorted out against Tonga on Saturday with Kodi Nikorima becoming an option to partner Johnson in the halves after playing the last 10 minutes from the bench in the 22-10 loss to the Kangaroos.
BATEMAN’S BLOWS CAREER AUDITION
John Bateman has a chance to show what he’s made of at Headingley in the second Test against Samoa on Sunday.
The English back-rower is in career limbo with talks he’s on the outer at the Wests Tigers despite being contracted for the next two seasons, and a move to Manly has been pitched up as a possible solution.
But while he’s still being handed representative jerseys his future is in his own hands.
He’ll just need to do a bit better than his output in England’s 34-18 win over Samoa on Monday morning.
He ran for just 57 metres, and while he was defensively sound, his main impact on the game was sparking a bit of push and shove at the back end of the match.
With his future in the spotlight at the moment, it’s the last thing he needs.
Clubs are watching, and the kind of ill discipline just further undermines his chances of a stable future in the game.
It doesn’t impress anyone.
DOLPHIN A WORLD CLASS ATTRACTION
Herbie Farnworth can be one of the biggest stars in the NRL over the coming years.
He’s been named centre of the year at the Dally Ms the past two seasons but there are bigger and better things to come for the 24-year-old if his game against Samoa is anything to go by.
The English centre was in supreme touch, and his flick pass for Victor Radley to score under the posts was one of the best try-assists you will see.
He finished with 165 running metres, seven tackle breaks, six offloads and a try.
DOGS-BOUND HALF CAN SOLVE FERNS ISSUES
The Kiwi Ferns have similar deficiencies in the halves with Tyla King and Gayle Broughton lacking direction in a 14-0 loss to the Jillaroos without their gun halfback Raecene McGregor.
And same as the men, they need more opportunities to play as a team and build their bonds throughout the year, rather than having just one or two chances in the Pacific Championships at the end of a season.
And after being held to nil for the first time against the Jillaroos it’s a big wakeup call for the Kiwi Ferns.
Five-eighth Broughton looked most dangerous on the left edge, but they are lacking stabilising force to finish the end of sets.
Canterbury-bound halfback Ash Quinlan could be the answer.
She formed a rotation with King and dummy half Brooke Anderson against the Jillaroos, playing 43 minutes between both roles from the interchange.
It’s a balance they need to get right against PNG this weekend if they’re to threaten Australia in the final in a fortnight.
KINI’S MAGICAL DEBUT
Keano Kini is a star in the making.
We have known it for a while now, but the biggest test of a player is whether they look out of place stepping up to the next level.
And luckily for the Kiwis, and also the Titans, he looks right at home on the International stage.
The 20-year-old’s New Zealand debut has been one of the bright spots of the Pacific Championships so far, finishing with 225 metres from a whopping 24 runs and five tackle breaks against the Kangaroos.
JILLAROOS IN DOUBT
There was plenty made of Dally M Medallist Olivia Kernick’s absence from the Jillaroos squad and the calls have started again to bring the Sydney Roosters’ premiership-winning back rower into the team for the Pacific Championships final.
Although they got the job done without her, a handful of players went down against the Kiwi Ferns with back rower Kezie Apps and hooker Olivia Higgins both coming from the field with injuries to force a shake up on the run.
Jess Sergis played a bit of back row, Tiana Penitani moved into the halves and Ali Brigginshaw switched to dummy half to cover the gaps.
Higgins will be in doubt for the final in a fortnight with a wrist injury, while Apps made it back onto the field from an ankle injury and should be fine to play.
However, there’s always room for the certified best player of the NRLW season.
Especially if the Kiwi Ferns beat PNG on Sunday bounce back in the final the same way they did last year.
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Originally published as International RL wrap: Jillaroos coach faces awkward selection dilemma, NRL veteran’s career-saving switch
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