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After their fantastic Magic Round win over the Panthers, the Warriors returned to home soil for the first time in a month to host the Dolphins. With several late-minute withdrawals, the Warriors team was severely understrength and back-to-back upsets seemed unlikely. However, the Warriors dug deep and ground out an impressive 24-20 victory.
What Went Down
An error from Edward Kosi gave the Dolphins early field position, and they capitalised in the fourth minute when Kodi Nikorima delivered a perfect pass to Jamayne Issako, who dove into the right corner for the first try of the night. The visitors scored again in the 16th minute when Herbie Farnworth picked up a loose Euan Aitken offload and stepped around several Warriors defended before diving over the line. The Warriors got themselves into the contest in the 20th minute when Marcelo Montoya outleaped the Dolphins defenders to snatch a Te Maire Martin bomb before shifting the ball inside to Chanel Harris-Tavita, who sprinted away to score. The game settled in a grind for a short period until Farnworth split the Warrior's defence and broke out into open space before sending Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow away for their third try of the match and a healthy 16-6 lead; however, it was the Warriors that would have the last laugh in the first half when Te Maire Martin hit and spun his way over the line to see the Warriors go into the sheds trailing 16-12.
Both sides went toe to toe in the second half, trading sets with neither unable to take control until the 57th minute when, after multiple sets camped in the Dolphin's red zone saw the Warriors take the lead after Dallin Watene-Zelezniak charged over the line, this saw the home side begin to control the tempo of the match. Less than 10 minutes later, they were over again when Marata Niukore barged his way over the line to see the Warriors extend their lead to 8. The Dolphins didn't throw in the towel and kept testing the Warrior's defensive line and reduced their lead to 4 when Isaako scored his second try in the 75th minute, but any hopes of a last minute come from behind victory were squashed with the Warriors throwing everything they had defensively before running out the clock with some slow dummy half runs to see them win their fifth game of the season and their second win in a row over a top 4 side 24-20.
My Thoughts
Well, another impressive win, I came into this match optimistic, but that changed throughout the week with the news of all the players that would miss out. Addin Fonua-Blakes stand down, and then the last-minute news of Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad and Taine Tuapiki missing the game had me concerned that the Dolphins would have a field day and those fears stayed with me when the Dolphins shot out to a 10-0 lead in the first 15 minutes. However, the Warriors didn't let it rattle them and just got to work, with the forwards all working together to fill the massive hole left by AFB and the backs playing smart football and mixing up the ways they attacked the Dolphins, which saw them become a team hard to shut down. Just like last week, we saw the players that had to step up either in a debut like Moala Graham-Taufa, who was solid throughout the contest or DWZ, who was a last-minute switch to fullback and crushed it with his aggressive kick returns. It's great to have superstars, but I will take 17 players who will give it 100%, as we saw here any day of the week.
It wasn't the best or prettiest performance by any stretch. Still, it was gutsy, which is more important as the season goes on as when the Warriors face adversity throughout the rest of the season, they can look at the past two weeks as a prime example of defying the odds when they work as a unit. Leading into the magic round, I thought the Warriors needed to win at least 1 match before the bye to keep their season alive, and they did win better and nailed both wins and have kept themselves in the hunt, which is keeping me optimistic about another final run.
Before moving on, I want to give a massive thank you to Roo and Hammer, who flew across the ditch to watch the game and allowed me to tag along as they got to tour the Warriors facilities and go into the sheds at full-time. It was an incredible experience, and it was great to see how the Warriors machine runs. It was also great to finally meet you guys in person.
There was plenty to smile about this week, which brings me to my positives.
Match Positives
The injury toll this season has been brutal, but the club's next-man-up approach has started to bear fruit. I already mentioned Moala Graham-Taufa, but he was great, and the future looks bright with him and Ali waiting for their chance for a regular first-grade spot. The experienced players who are not generally seen as the traditional leaders have stood up in the absence of Tohu Harris and Shaun Johnson, with Dylan Walker, Mitchell Barnett, and DWZ really impressing me. The squad appears to be on the same page right now, and they just need to keep this never-say-die attitude when all the regulars start to return to the gameday 17.
The Warriors' discipline improved tenfold in this match, with no conceded penalties, only 2 ruck infringements, and 1 inside the 10 call. Giving away silly penalties has been an issue this season, so to give away none in this much was fantastic. The chances of them staying at zero penalties conceded are slim, but if they can keep them reasonably low, they will continue to increase their chances of getting the win each week, so fingers crossed.
The forwards came to play. I was concerned they would struggle against the Dolphin's pack without AFB, but they all stood up. While four of them cracked my triple-figure target, most of the rest got close and were great at bending the line and getting the momentum rolling forward. Barnett led with purpose and has been rewarded with a squad selection for New South Wales, and I thought Bunty Afoa was excellent in his second stint. Marata Niukore also added much-needed size and got through the game injury-free, which is a bonus. The key for this pack will be to continue to share the load instead of relying on AFB and Tohu to do a lot of the heavy lifting when they return.
However, I did have some concerns, which brings me to my negatives from the game.
Match Negatives
It was another slow start, which I will put down to the reshuffled side. Thankfully, the Dolphins only got two tries in that starting period. It would make me feel better if the Warriors hit the ground running, but a slow start with a strong finish is better than a quick start and second-half fade.
Unfortunately, there was another injury, with Paul Roache going off early with an ankle injury. There is no word on how bad it is, but I saw him in a moon boot after the match. Hopefully, with the bye next round, he will be ready to go in time for the next game in Round 14, and the injuries start to decline now, as it would be nice to see the team get to use the same combinations for an extended period.
Warrior of the Match
My Warrior of the Match goes to Te Maire Martin.
He impressed me last week and was solid once again here, he has relished the chance of directing the side around. He scored a nice try and just looked calm and composed out there. His passing game was top-notch, creating most of the Warrior's scoring chances, and his kicking was decent, utilising both the long and short kicking game at the right times and creating plenty of pressure. He also showed plenty of heart defensively, with some well-timed scrambled defensive efforts, stopping the Dolphins when they were ready to break away.
He has been a decisive player amongst the fanbase, but he has shown he has what it takes to perform in the halves the past fortnight; the big thing will be how he can continue this form while SJ returns and takes the driver's seat back.
Warrior to Improve
My Warrior to improve goes to Edward Kosi.
It was hard to pick a player in this segment, but I went with Kosi this week despite his less-than-ideal start with an error that allowed the Dolphins to strike early. He had a tough time defensively but started to find his groove as the game went on, running for 163m and coming close to scoring in the corner. I feel for Kosi. He is a nice guy who can deliver solid performances when his confidence is up. I assume the last-minute call-ups are not helping his preparations, but you can see he is giving his all, which I cannot fault, so his form will turn around; I'm confident he just needs to work on those schoolboy errors.
Bye Round Thoughts
The Warriors get their first bye in Round 13, adding another two points to their competition total, and more importantly, it is a chance for the squad to rest up some niggling injuries and give the casualty ward a chance to deplete with most players currently scheduled to be available by Round 14, in time for the Warriors clash with the Cowboys.With no game to review next week, I will write a mid-season review that covers the good, the bad, and the ugly of the 2024 season to date and gives my thoughts on the Round 14 match against the Cowboys. It will be interesting to look back at the peaks and valleys we have experienced with the 2024 Warriors, but I am looking forward to it, so look out for it next Monday.
So, that was an awesome Round 12, but as usual, I will leave you with some questions.
Can the Warriors keep this form going with the return of their stars, or could it be a disruption?
How are your confidence levels of the Warriors playing finals football again in 2024?
Who was your player of the day and Warrior to improve?
What is your score prediction against the Cowboys?
What a wonderful and welcome tonic the last two weeks have been for us Warriors fans. For such a second or third string team to put together consecutive performances like that against two top four sides, and two legendary coaches has been a real pleasure to watch.
ReplyDeleteYour first question is an interesting one. Has the inclusion of lesser known players made it harder for opponents to prepare for playing against the Warriors? Have the newer players shown their more experienced teammates the way the team should be playing? And how much credit should go to the coaching staff? To answer your question, I think Webster should chose carefully which players to drop back into the side and which should be allowed an extended rest, rather than having all our first choice players return at once.
I certainly feel more confident of our finals chances now, mainly because other teams will no longer be so confident of a win against us. We have suddenly become unpredictable because we have shown we can win with whoever we put on the field.
Player of the day: Barnett. He has become such an asset to this team.
Player to improve: Any of our first choice players who may be realising that their place in the team may be under threat.
I have a nagging feeling that the Cowboys may beat us similarly to how we have been winning with a makeshift team due to origin commitments. I will have a rethink when I see the team lists but for now, Cowboys by 4.