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Watch: Five of the best in 2017 - Kiwis in Europe

By Campbell Burnes
Bundee Aki

New Zealanders make up a great deal of the foreign players plying their trade in the UK and France. Some are big names, some aren’t – and some even ended up making the test side of the country they’ve ended up in.

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Here’s the five best performers of the year.

Bundee Aki (Connacht, Ireland) 

Is that Bundee O’Aki who has been carving up for Connacht and now Ireland?

It is indeed the 27-year-old former Steelers and Chiefs midfielder. He has made the right career move. After all, there was little hope of him becoming an All Black if he had opted to stay in New Zealand.

Aki was a big part of Connacht’s historic PRO12 championship victory in 2015-16, and now he hopes to be the next Gordon D’Arcy after announcing his test arrival for Ireland with a jarring tackle in the opening play of the November clash with the Springboks. Since, then he has given Connacht coach Kieran Keane and, of course, Joe Schmidt, cause to smile with his muscular, accurate play.

Furthermore, you have love that Aki is combining with former Hurricane Pita Ahki in the Connacht midfield.

Victor Vito (La Rochelle, France)

At 30, Victor Vito should be just about coming into the prime of a career that has promised so much.

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He will not need reminding that were he still in New Zealand, he would be the next No 8 off the cab rank behind Kieran Read in a position where the nation lacks quality depth.

Now into his second season with ambitious, Kiwi-laden French club La Rochelle, Vito is a key man at the back of the scrum and, on one occasion, in the No 7 jersey. His lineout prowess, ball skills and physicality make him a highly valued commodity in the French game.

Said to be the highest paid New Zealand forward in the Top 14, Vito made such an impact in his first season in 2016-17 that he was adjudged the competition’s player of the year. He is in the running again as he plays a prominent part in La Rochelle’s high-flying status in the Top 14 and Champions Cup.

Johnny McNicholl (Scarlets, Wales)

Last season Hadleigh Parkes was probably the best Kiwi pro in Wales.

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Parkes is still playing consistently and has now won a Welsh cap. But his Kiwi teammate at Scarlets, Johnny McNicholl, is also showing his considerable wares to telling effect and could also wear the Wales jersey when he qualifies.

Coach Wayne Pivac always admired McNicholl’s work ethic when he used to carve up for Canterbury. Now, operating mainly on the right wing to accommodate Leigh Halfpenny, McNicholl has scored a clutch of tries and looks to be thriving in the Scarlets’ open style of play. Some of his long range breaks and tries are reminiscent of his work with the red and blacks.

Charlie Piutau (Ulster, Ireland)

They reckon Charlie Piutau never has an off-day.

That is a good thing when you command a mammoth salary, but is also a clear indication that Piutau, still just 26, may yet have some of his best rugby ahead of him. The former All Black is doing the business for Ulster in the PRO14 and Champions Cup, but from 2018-19 will be joining his brother Siale and coach Pat Lam at Bristol.

The tries are not flowing for Piutau at Ulster, but he is racking up big minutes and compelling allround stats, including six try assists and 51 defenders beaten in his 12 appearances this season. Sounds like he is earning his corn.

Tony Ensor (Stade Francais, France)

Tony Who? I can hear some of you exclaiming.

Why, 26-year-old Tony Ensor of Kaikorai and Otago fame, who played 34 games for Otago until 2016, of course. He is joining a select list of unheralded New Zealanders who have made Stade Francais their home on the back of high quality performances. Think back to Cliff Mytton in 1997-98. The former North Harbour second five did the donkey work in a galaxy of stars.

Ensor has chimed in fruitfully from fullback for the struggling Parisians. He is their leading tryscorer, so is already proving popular at Stade Jean Bouin, where Greg Cooper is one of the coaches.

That is the thing about plying your trade in Europe. If you do your job well, always front up and rarely get injured, your club and its fans will love you. Ensor is the embodiment of the good Kiwi pro in Europe.

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J
Jon 1 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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john 3 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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Adrian 5 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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T
Trevor 8 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
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