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With both teams sitting on 6 wins and 9 losses, walking away with a victory here was crucial to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.
Despite leading 16-6 at half-time, the Warriors could not get the job done as the Broncos clawed their way back into the match and forced the game into golden point where neither team was able to gain the upper hand resulting in the first draw since 2016.
What to say about this performance?
I knew this match was going to be tough, but after that first-half lead, I thought the Warriors were well on the way to securing the win here, but it looked like they stopped trying to win the match and were too focused on holding onto the lead.
The injury to Ken Maumalo in the second half didn't help matters, and his absence left a massive hole in the Warriors attacking sets, and their last tackle options left a lot to be desired (more on that below).
It was yet another game that the Warriors should have won this year and it's frustrating to see them let precious competition points slip through their fingers once again, but at least they walked away with a point which leads me to my positives from the match.
The Warriors looked dangerous in the first half, running with intent and creating opportunities almost at will.
Peta Hiku was linking well once again with Maumalo, and they were causing headaches for the Broncos all night until Maumalo left the field, Hiku's move to the wing dampened his impact on the game slightly, but he still provided some strong runs.
Against a sizeable forward pack, the Warriors pack fronted on the attack and were in the fight for the majority of the contest, the platform they set allowed Kodi Nikorima to create some opportunities for the backline, and if the pack can keep that form going this week, you can expect to see some exciting tries.
The fitness shone again, playing for 90 minutes is no easy feat, and some of the Warriors had ridiculous stats, Tuivasa-Shecks 367 running metres and Jazz Tevaga's 72 tackles (not including Jazz ran for 184 metres also) being the standouts.
You can be disappointed in the result, but it would be unfair to not praise the individual efforts by many of the men on that field, combining those efforts as a team was where they let themselves down.
Speaking of letdowns, that leads me to my negatives from the performance.
The Warriors last tackle options were terrible, against the Knights the Warriors were making great inroads with grubber kicks, but in this match, they almost always decided to run on the last.
Nikorima has plenty of pace and can create something out of nothing at times, but they cannot do this on every set.
Blake Green needs to step up and take control of this team or move out of the way for Chanel.
The forwards may have had a good night on attack, but their defence needs work, the Warriors were weak up the middle of the park, and the Broncos took advantage, charging up the middle and utilising some nice inside balls to unleash Payne Haas and Tevita Pangai Junior.
The Warriors need to sort out their ruck defence now as the Sharks will be charging up the middle of the park all night long on Friday night.
The errors and penalties in the second half turned the tide in favour of the home team, and the Warriors have been guilty of silly mistakes all year.
Perhaps it's a case of low confidence, but when the pressure comes, the Warriors tend to fold right now, playoff hopes may be gone, but if the Warriors can sort this out, they will at least get themselves a chance to end the season on a high note.
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| Copyright Photo: Gett Images |
This was Blair's best game since he joined the New Zealand club, a superb solo effort try, 188 running metres and 31 tackles rounded out a good night for the veteran second rower.
With Tohu Harris still out with injury, the Warriors need this version of Blair to stick around and lead the pack from the front.
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Papali'i did make 50 tackles, but it has been apparent in 2019 that his attack needs some work, he is prone to handling errors and makes poor decisions with the ball in hand too often.
With the wingers this team has, the second rower's ability to link with the centres to create overlaps to unleash Fusitu'a and Mauamlo in the corners is crucial, and right now you cannot bank on Papali'i being that link.
He is young and still has plenty of time to develop, and I'm hopeful that he will grow into a balance footballer and not spend his career being a tackling machine.
Round 18 sees the Warriors take a home game to Wellington when they host the Cronulla Sharks.
The Sharks have not had the best run of form recently and will be looking at turning their fortunes around with a win in the Cake Tin.
The Warriors, on the other hand, need to get the win here if they want to keep their slim top eight hopes alive.
Ken Maumalo should be fit to return, and the Sharks sound like they will be without Shaun Johnson, Josh Dugan, Josh Morris and Andrew Fifita so if the Warriors have a decent chance of getting the win here.
I don't see it unfortunately as I'm picking the Sharks to come away with the win here by 10.
It should be a good game, however, and I'm making the journey down the island to watch it in my first live game away from Mount Smart in what feels like an age.
I'm looking forward to the trip and hopefully will be able to catch up with some of you who are also making the trip.
I will be keeping an eye out of Facebook for where everyone is meeting up before the match and will let you know where I am on my page so if you see me having drinks before the game come and have a chat.
So that was my take on an unfortunate Round 17, and as usual, I will leave you with some questions.
How would you fix the Warriors second-half collapses?
Who was your player of the match and player to improve?
Who would be your starting lock, Tevaga or Burr?
Are you travelling to the Cake Tin and what is your prediction for Round 18?
Oh dear another one of those games that the Warriors let slip through their fingers.
ReplyDeleteBoth RTS and Blair had great games.
If Green, Papalii, Tavanga, Fusitua, Luke and Ah Mau could find their offensive confidence during key moments of the game the Warriors would be a lot more competitive.
Green’s has left his mojo somewhere but Chanel still seems unprepared and still needs to find a decent kicking game.
Fix a few of those things up and the Warriors would be kickn all sorts of butt.
Go the Mighty Warriors.
Confidence is the key, I think they would be offering plenty more on attack if that confidence was there.
ReplyDeleteChanel still needs time I agree but Green is struggling.
I still think they can string some good performances together to end the season on a high note.
I honestly don't know why our team struggles to score second half points. It's almost like teams feel that, like the Warriors in the early days, if you weather the first half Warriors assault and stay with them, then you will get them in the end. But that doesn't really explain why we can't perform in the second half unless it's related to fitness or that old Warriors problem: Confidence.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of player of the day, Adam Blair and Peta Hiku come to mind. I piled praise on Blair last week despite my usual suspicions of him and this week he was even better. We asked for more of the same and we got it! Hiku gets plenty of criticism but week after week he creates attacking opportunities and must surely be partly responsible for Ken's high try count this year.
My initial thought is start Burr, with Jazz off the bench, which has worked pretty well so far despite Tevaga's propensity for errors at crucial times. But the more I think about it, Jazz may respond well to being given the starting responsibility, so I find myself thinking that maybe we should give him a few starts to see what happens.
WE were going to go to this game as Johnson's first game against the Warriors (assuming he plays), but it's not going to happen. Looks like we will make it to the Raiders game at Mt Smart instead.
For us to win this, the Sharks will need to lose five in a row which just seems unlikely. I will follow my heart then, and pick a Warriors victory by 8.