'We probably did get in there right under the noses of the Hurricanes'
Despite the loss of key figure Damian McKenzie to Japan, the Chiefs will enter 2022 with an improved squad from the one that was pipped by the Crusaders in this year’s Super Rugby Aotearoa final and that’s thanks in part to the arrival of some young age-grade talents.
Tyrone Thompson is such a talent, having cut his teeth with the 2018 New Zealand Secondary Schools side and earning a spot in last year’s Under 20s training programme which was eventually canned due to the pandemic.
Thompson, however, isn’t like fellow Chiefs newbies Gideon Wrampling, Samipeni Finau and Cortez Ratima, who all hail from the Waikato. Instead, he’s been plucked out of the Wellington NPC team and whisked into the squad as a young replacement for the retiring Nathan Harris.
While he won’t be expected to immediately clock up too many minutes, backing up new All Black Samisoni Taukei’aho and experienced Super Rugby operator Bradley Slater, Thompson does loom as an excellent long-term prospect for the team.
“Nathan Harris, who has been an absolute warrior for the Chiefs, Bay of Plenty and All Blacks, has obviously signalled that he’s retired from the game. It’s always sad to lose players, particularly to injury, but his retirement has opened the door for Tyron to come in,” Chiefs head coach Clayton McMillan said following the unveiling of the new squad for next season.
“I actually played with Tyrone’s dad many, many, many moons ago. He was a lot smaller; he was a halfback. But a bloody good man.
“I actually first saw Tyrone play for a Hurricanes Under 20s team that played New Zealand Under 20s in a trial match and I thought he was the best player on the park. He was pretty dynamic with ball-in-hand. He’s a big boy, he’s only going to get bigger.
“We just think in terms of bringing on some young blood in behind Soni, who’s made every post a winner with the All Blacks, and Bradley Slater, who’s had a great season with Taranaki, but also being part of the furniture here for a couple of years, [Thomposon] is a great young prospect to bring in.”
Taukei’aho’s long stint with the national side this season could see the wrecking ball of a hooker sit out a few matches in the opening rounds of the competition, which would allow 21-year-old Thompson to chalk up some appearances off the bench.
The Hurricanes will likely be in a similar position, with both Dane Coles and Asafo Aumua members of the All Blacks squad that travelled to Europe this year. In all likelihood, Hurricanes coach Jason Holland would have had Thompson pencilled in as a man to fill in for those two absentees at the beginning of the season but the Chiefs evidently presented the young hooker with a more compelling package to lure him north to Hamilton.
"I’m not too sure I’ve actually been in a changing room that has felt so morbid. It was at that point that I could feel the heavy weight of disappointment and expectation." #SuperRugbyPacific @ChiefsRugby
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— RugbyPass+ (@RugbyPassPlus) October 6, 2021
“It’s a competitive market out there and you can’t really sit on your hands and just expect that people that may have had a pathway through your development programmes are still going to be there when it comes to signing players,” McMillan said. “Tyrone’s just one of those players who we’ve tracked for a couple of years now and the stars aligned to be able to offer him an opportunity.
“I think we probably did get in there right under the noses of the Hurricanes and that’s just the nature of the beast really. Sometimes moving early pays dividends and other times it doesn’t so you’ve just got to back your homework and do your homework.”
With the Hurricanes also losing Ricky Riccitelli to the Blues, they’ll be relying on the relatively experienced James O’Reilly to back up their All Blacks rakes.
For the Chiefs, however, Thompson is an excellent recruit that could forge a long career in the jersey and his move to the franchise shows great succession planning for the still young Taukei’aho and Slater.
Comments on RugbyPass
Farcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
7 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
7 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
61 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
7 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
61 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
61 Go to comments