Moana Pasifika vs New Zealand Māori: Liam Messam to start alongside eight debutants in Māori team
Former All Black Liam Messam will start at No.8 for a New Zealand Māori team that features eight debutants.
New Zealand Māori coach Clayton McMillan’s team features several old hands such as Messam and loosehead prop Josh Hohneck, as well as some exciting young talent for their one-off match against Moana Pasifika in Hamilton on Saturday.
Lock Manaaki Selby-Rickit, midfielders Quinn Tupaea and Billy Proctor plus fullback Kaleb Trask will earn their first New Zealand Māori caps in the run-on side.
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Liam Messam last played for New Zealand MÄori against the British and Irish Lions in 2017.
Hooker Kurt Eklund, prop Tamaiti Williams, loose forward Ethan Roots and midfielder Rameka Poihipi are likely to make their debuts off the bench.
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“It’s a really proud opportunity for those young men and their whānau and their iwi hapū to represent the Māori All Blacks,” McMillan said of the debutants.
“It represents a bit of a changing of the guard, we’ve had some real stalwarts that have moved overseas or are unavailable for this particular campaign and that opens up the door for some of those young guys to come in and show us what they’ve got and experience what it’s like to be in our environment.”
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NZ MÄori hooker Ash Dixon will captain the side against Moana Pasifika.
Hohneck has not played for New Zealand Māori since 2015 and Messam’s last appearance was the 2017 match against the British and Irish Lions in 2017.
McMillan said the value of the experience the pair bring to the team cannot be underestimated.
“We felt the likes of Liam and Josh, guys that have been in the jersey historically, gone away and plied their trade overseas, have come back and added real value to their Mitre 10 Cup teams,” McMillan said.
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Kaleb Trask’s standout season for Bay of Plenty has landed him his first New Zealand Māori call up.
“It’s a no brainer for us, they are still good enough, but the peripheral stuff they bring, the mana and the knowledge and their ability to set really high standards for young people to follow has been instrumental in pulling these guys together.”
Bryn Hall has won the hotly contested starting halfback jersey over former All Black Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi and Fletcher Smith has missed out on the match-day 23 with Otere Black starting at first-five eighth.
Experienced loose forward Reed Prinsep was unavailable for selection.
New Zealand Māori: Kaleb Trask, Shaun Stevenson, Billy Proctor, Quinn Tupaea, Sean Wainui, Otere Black, Bryn Hall, Liam Messam, Billy Harmon, Whetukamokamo Douglas, Manaaki Selby-Rickit, Isaia Walker-Leawere, Marcel Renata, Ash Dixon (Kāpene), Josh Hohneck. Reserves: Kurt Eklund, Pouri Rakete-Stones, Tamaiti Williams, Ethan Roots, Mitchell Karpik, Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, Rameka Poihipi, Jonah Lowe.
