NZ Warriors 2024 Round 3 Review: Warriors First Win in the Books after Scratchy Showing vs Raiders

After their heartbreaking defeat in Melbourne, the Warriors returned to New Zealand, heading down to Christchurch in a sold-out Apollo Projects Stadium to host a Raiders team that has surprised many with their 2-0 start.

The Warriors started strong, but errors and missed opportunities saw the Raiders get back into the contest before a quick flurry of tries saw the Warriors come back to secure their first win of 2024, 18-10.

What Went Down

After trading errors in the opening stages, the Warriors were the first to show their attacking threat after Shaun Johnson put Jackson Ford into open space; he opted to hold onto the ball instead of putting away an unmarked Luke Metcalf, a Jordan Rapana conceded penalty keep the Warriors in control and moments later the Warriors were on the board after Johnson put Addin Fonua-Blake over untouched in the eighth minute. The big prop almost had his second in the 18th minute when Rocco Berry caught a Johnson kick and put him into space, but he wasnt fast enough, and the Raiders scrambled well to bring him down metres from the try line. Berry was involved again 5 minutes later when the Warriors unleashed their right edge attack, but his decision to hold on to the ball instead of feeding Dallin Watene-Zelezniak saw the Warriors miss another scoring chance.

The sides traded errors and penalties until the Raiders looked to have scored in the 30th minute when Ethan Strange powered his way over the try line; however, his try was denied by the Bunker, a Freddy Lussick error handed the ball back to the Raiders, and this time, they would not be denied when Matt Timoko barged towards the line breaking the tackles of Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Marcelo Montoya, Jamal Fogarty's conversion attempt missed the mark to see the Warriors cling onto a 2 point lead. In the dying stages of the first half, the Raiders tried to out on one last big play, but that was put to rest when DWZ made a bone-rattling tackle on Albert Hopoate in the last big play of the half, seeing the Warriors go into the sheds with a 6-4 lead.

The second half continued the trend of both sides swapping errors, with neither really finding their feet. The only highlight in the first ten minutes after the break was a Tom Ale line break; he tried to put Mitchell Barnett away, only for him to be run down. The Warriors then shifted left, but Montoya was bundled over the sideline.

After that let-off, the Raiders started stringing some attacks together and took their first lead of the match moments later when Fogarty made a nice pass to Timoko. Timoko then passed the ball to Nick Cotric, who dove over the line basically untouched due to an ill-timed Montoya rush in.

The Warriors, under pressure, kept their composure and kept plugging away and, in the 61st minute, would regain their lead when the Warriors shifted the ball to the right to DWZ, who then ran back towards the middle of the pitch before getting the ball to Metcalf who made easy work of the scrambling defence to cross under the dot.

A few minutes later, the Warriors were over again when Cotric dropped a Metcalf kick. The Warriors went to the right quickly, and Tuivasa-Sheck broke two tackles to cross for his first try since his return from Union. With time running out, it was edge-of-your-seat stuff for Warriors fans who remembered last week's ending. The Warriors were under a lot of pressure, but the Raiders panicked, making some simple errors to hand the Warriors a much-needed 18-10 win, sending the sellout crowd home happy.

My Thoughts

Well, this was an interesting game, the first win of the year, but for me, it was their worst performance this season. That's not a knock on them; they had to win ugly, and despite those losses in the first two rounds, they didn't drop their heads and hung on to the bitter end, turning on the pressure with their defence, which saw the Raiders wilt.

The Raiders have proven to be a tough, gritty team this season, so this wasn't going to be an easy game. However, if the Warriors had completed some of their missed opportunities, this could have been a comfortable victory. As I have said in each review this season, there is a lot to work on, but the pieces are there, and once they all click into place, this side will be a tough team to face.

This game had it all: beautiful attacking plays, bone-rattling defence, a few hair-pulling moments, and one hell of a crowd. So, as nerve-racking as it was to watch, it was an enjoyable contest and, hopefully, the start of a run for the Warriors with some favourable matchups on the horizon.

It wasn't their best performance, but there were a few things to smile about, which brings me to my positives.

Match Positives

The forwards continue to impress me this season, with 5 running for over 100 metres.

Jackson Ford (164m), Addin Fonua-Blake (159m), Mitchell Barnett (150m), Tohu Harris (130m) and Jazz Tevaga (101m). There is still a drop-off when Barnett and AFB leave the pitch, but the replacement middles are improving; Tevaga got through plenty of work, Tom Ale added some impact, and Bunty Afoa added some defensive starch to the middle of the field. Still work to do, of course, but if they can keep improving on getting that go forward, we should see the backs create many more attacking opportunities.

It's a week closer to getting the full-strength side back: Waye Egan, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Marata Niukore, Dylan Walker, and now Taine Tuaupiki are all out. I commended the squad's depth in the preseason, and it has been tested. I think the players who have had to step up have done a decent job, but I can't wait to see what the full-strength 17 can do when on the pitch together.

The club has spoken a lot about being 0-2, not affecting them, but as a player, it does sit in the back of your mind a little, so getting that win just takes some pressure off. Playing well but still losing can just suck all the air out of the room, so this was a perfectly timed confidence boost.

They have runs on the board now and can focus on stringing together some victories.

However, I did have concerns, which brings me to my negatives from the game.

Match Negatives

The Warrior's errors jumped into double digits for the first time this season, with 13 made.

I'm not sure if their desperate pursuit of that first win made them push things a little, but to face the top dogs in this competition, you cannot give away this many free sets, as they will put you to the sword. They have shown in patches that they can play attacking football with limited errors, so I want to see those patches extend to the entire contest.

Flowing on from the errors, the missed opportunities were true coachkillers, Ford going alone instead of putting Metcalf away, and Berry not passing to DWZ are the two that spring to mind. You can let these go in a victory, but if the Warriors lose this you know these moments would be brought up countless times. They are little things, but they will improve with a bit more confidence and communication; they are split-second decisions that need to be made, but with a bit more time together, I am sure that these opportunites will be taken.

The right edge attack looks to be getting back to its 2023 form slowly, which is great; however, the left edge attack still needs work; the majority of the time that it looked dangerous was when Shaun Johnson shifted that way, Metcalf is growing each and every work, but I want to see his distribution skills go up another level to really unleash RTS and Montoya. That edge just screams points, so once they get to a point where both sides are deadly, then the opposition's defence is just going to open up.

Warrior of the Match

My Warrior of the Match goes to Tohu Harris.

The skipper delivers week in and week out, but because he always plays well, he sometimes gets overlooked in this section (a bit like Simon Mannering used to). He led the side with 50 tackles, ran for 130m, and was more involved in the playmaking with some excellent passing plays. He is a true legend of this club; despite the constant injury concerns that cloud Harris, he continuously churns through the work and is a great role model for the young forwards developing at the Warriors.

Warrior to Improve

I actually have no player to improve this week, Jackson Ford and Marcelo Montoya were close, but I think by the end of 80 minutes, their negatives were balanced out by their positives, a statement that would have been different if the Warriors lost this much, I am sure.

Next Round Thoughts and Prediction

Round 4 sees the Warriors remain on home soil, returning to Go Media Stadium to face the Newcastle Knights, who defeated the Storm 14-12 in Round 3.

Regarding the team I would pick, we know Taine Tuaupiki is out. If Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad is ready to go, I would bring him straight back in. If he is not ready, then Tuivasa-Sheck moves to fullback, and I would bring Ali Leiataua into the centres. If Wayde Egan and Dylan Walker are also fit, I would bring them back, with Chanel Harris-Tavita and Jazz Tevaga dropping out.

The Knights haven't had the greatest start to the 2024 season but showed a lot of improvement in their first win of the year against Melbourne. You know they will be looking for some revenge after the Warriors ended their 2023 season in this venue in a dominant fashion, so I'm expecting a tough contest. 

It's almost rinse and repeat from last week. If the Warriors can reduce those errors and play a consistent 80 minutes, a win is definitely on the cards, I'm confident that they will be up for this so I am picking the Warriors to win by 8.

So, that was a relieving Round 3, but as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

Do you have a player to improve?

Who would you bring in at centre if CNK is unavailable for Round 4 and RTS plays fullback?

Which Warrior has surprised you the most so far this season?

What is your score prediction against the Knights?