Jersey Flegg Team List: Taking the game to the uburbs

Taking pathways rugby league to Bruce Pulman Park in South Auckland will resonate for many players in the One New Zealand Warriors’ New South Wales Cup and Jersey Flegg Cup teams when they face South Sydney in a double header there tomorrow.

The Jersey Flegg contest kicks off first at 10.00am before the NSW Cup sides do battle at 12.00pm.

The Takanini venue is familiar to countless players who have come through the Warriors’ development system.

It’s there where many age group events are played including the New Zealand Rugby League’s national secondary schools’ tournament, the nursery for so many NRL careers.

Tomorrow Warriors NRL players of the present and future will be on display in a season which has been notable for the club fielding a full collection of pathways teams for the first time.

The Jersey Flegg under-21 side will be playing at its fourth different home venue in the Auckland region this season having previously appeared at Navigation Homes Stadium in Pukekohe, Go Media Stadium and North Harbour Stadium.

Wins have been difficult to come by in the competition this year but the squad is achieving its key goal of providing a vital pathway to develop players.

On that score it has more than delivered with no fewer than 49 players used by the Warriors at Jersey Flegg level so far this season (centre-back rower Siale Faeamani the most used appearing in 18 of the 20 games played).

The Warriors are out of contention for finals football but they meet a South Sydney side which is similarly placed. The Rabbitohs are 12th on 19 points with the Warriors 13th on 17.