NZ Warriors 2024 Round 14 Review: Cowboys Lassoed by Rampaging Warriors

After enjoying their Round 13 bye, the Warriors returned across the ditch to face the Cowboys. With some of the heavy hitters back and a week to recover from extra niggles, The Warriors hit the ground running with a dominant display, cruising to their third win in a row 42-12.

What Went Down

After an early error from former Warrior Viliami Vailea, the Warriors found themselves in good field position and looked to have scored a few plays later when Dallin Watene-Zelezniak sauntered over in the 2nd minute; however, the bunker denied it due to Jackson Ford's obstruction. The Cowboys tried to apply pressure on the Warriors with a strong kick-chase at the end of their set but gave away a penalty when Valentine Holmes tackled Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad early, and from there, the Warriors took control of the match with several strong sets that earned repeat sets through some cowboys ill-discipline and accurate grubbers into the in-goal, and they were finally rewarded in the 8th minute when Nicoll-Klokstad snatch up a Te Maire Martin flick pass that had gone to ground, broke a tackle and dived over in the corner for the first try of the evening. The Cowboys continued to let themselves down with a Tom Dearden error and an inside the 10 six again call, which handed the Warriors favourable field possession, and they wasted little time when Addin Fonua-Blake barged over in the 13th minute for his sixth try of the season. The sides started to trade sets, and it looked like this might become a more even matchup until an error from Kyle Feldt saw the Warriors capitalise once again and cross for their third try of the night when Mitchell Barnett dived across the line in the 19th minute, taking advantage of a Cowboys defensive line in tatters. The Warriors lost some composure, made several errors, and gave away some six agains, which saw the Cowboys finally get some ball in the Warriors' red zone, but the Warriors' defensive line held firm and forced yet another Cowboys error. The Warriors got back to work and, after several sets, were close to scoring again, only for the official to call a forward pass, handing the back-peddling Cowboys a slight reprieve; however, it wasnt for long as an error from Braidon Burns saw the Warriors back in attack mode, a few moments later Tohu Harris burrowed his way over the line but the bunker ruled that he didn't get the ball down, the Warriors kept their cool and were rewarded when a Te Maire Martin pass on the final take hit Rocco Berry who was fortunate when the ball bounced off his chest and touched no Cowboy which allowed him to regather it before scoring in the 32nd minute to see the score extend to 22-0. The Cowboys would end the first half on a positive note when Dearden spotted some lazy markers deep inside his own half and sniped away before sending Scott Drinkwater away for their first try of the match to see the sides go into the sheds with the Warriors leading 22-6.

The second half started on a more even platform, with both sides trading sets and errors for the first 10 minutes; in the 50th minute, the Cowboys looked like they may have scored, but the bunker confirmed that Burns made an error. The Warriors surged up the field and were given a penalty on the last tackle due to a dangerous tackle. The Warriors clicked into gear with a few darting attempts at the Cowboys line before Te Maire Martin threw a Harbour Bridge pass over several defenders and bounced forward before Dallin Watene-Zelezniak scooped it up for the first try of the second half. This try would have been taken away from the Warriors most nights, but not this night. The game settled again, but with the Cowboys struggling to dig themselves out of the hole they got in, tempers started to flare, with Chad Townsend and Chanel Harris-Tavita starting to give each other a bit of niggle. An early tackle penalty against Townsend in the 60th minute saw CHT drop the ball on the former Warrior's head, which saw CHT sent to the bin for ten, Townsend would join him seconds later, and the Warriors pushed their lead out to 30-6 when Pompey slotted the penalty kick. A few plays later, a Jaxson Purdue error saw Marcelo Montoya scoop the ball up and run into open space before losing the ball due to a massive tackle from Holmes; the official ruled it an illegal shoulder charge; however, the Cowboys successfully challenged the call to retain possession. The Cowboys struggled to find any holes in the Warrior's defensive line, but a long pass from Dearden to Feldt almost brought them some points, but they kept composed and forced an error from Berry with their fifth tackle kick, and with a new set, they pushed their luck but made the wrong call and saw the ball go over the dead ball line. The Warriors charged up the field with their next set, and after a linebreak from TMM, the Cowboys were all over the place and a grubber from CNK went into the goal and looked to be heading over the dead-ball line, only for DWZ to slap the ball backwards to CNK who grounded it for an amazing try in the 68th minute. The Cowboys finally showed some life in the 72nd minute after earning a seven-tackle set and managing to hold onto the ball for several plays, shifting left to an unmarked Burns to cross for their second try of the night. The side traded errors, including a mistimed Pompey offload, before the Warriors ended the match in dominant style when Berry popped the ball to CNK, who broke down the field but elected to hold onto the ball; a few plays later, Berry was involved again when he latched onto a TMM grubber to score his second try of the night in what was the final scoring play of the match with the Warriors cementing their third win in a row in a onesided 42-12 win.

My Thoughts

Well, what a win! I predicted and expected a Warriors win, but not by that kind of scoreline. The Warriors started with intent and never looked in doubt, and while the Cowboys played well below their capabilities, the Warriors didn't let the game fall into a try-for-try messy battle. They played a simple game plan, made the most of the opportunities the Cowboys handed them, and openly attacked whichever side of the field had holes, which is precisely what we want to see from them. The returns of several big names worked well, with the players slotting into the team without disrupting the flow the team has had since Magic Round. It wasnt a perfect performance, with a few too many errors and six agains for my liking, but it was yet another confidence-boosting win that has seen the Warriors shoot a few spots up the ladder and get them into top-eight contention and with a few challenging games coming up the Warriors need to build on this past month and stack those competition points. The Warriors still have Shaun Johnson and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to come back into the fold, which will lead to an interesting problem for Andrew Webster as he attempts to find a way to fit all the players in, but that is a good problem to have with a side that appears to have turned its season around.

There was plenty to smile about this week, which brings me to my positives.

Match Positives

The forwards put in a massive stint, with five of them running for over 100 metres, Addin Fonua-Blake (207m), Jackson Ford (178m), Mitchell Barnett (147m), Tohu Harris (143m) and Dylan Walker (105m). The rest were not that far behind, and with them doing the hard yards on both sides of the ball, it just made the back's life so much as they were able to expose the Cowboy's defensive structure that was struggling to stay together with the Warriors rolling forward. With big games against the Storm and Broncos in the next few weeks, this pack needs to keep this level up if they want to score the upsets. Before moving on, I want to give an extra shoutout to Jackson Ford and his move to prop, I raised my eyebrows at the selection during the week, and while I thought he would be serviceable upfront, I did not expect him to excel like he did, now it's only one much, so I want to see him remain at this level, but I think keeping him at prop is the way to go.

The Warriors didn't take their foot off the gas. With a healthy lead going into the break, I had concerns that the team would let off and allow the Cowboys into the contest, but no, they kept pushing and added another three tries to the tally. The NRL is a tough contest, and we have already seen many times this season that if you leave the door open, teams can overcome large deficits and win, so it is essential to stay committed for the entire contest. It's promising to see the Warriors show that focus, as that is a mentality they will need to keep for the remainder of the season if they wish to play finals.

Lastly, the defence was a highlight; admittingly, they didn't have much thrown at them, but to hold the Cowboys to only two tries is a big statement. The Cowboys made plenty of errors, but some were down to the pressure the Warriors defensive line piled on. The side was communicating, and more importantly, we saw more trust between the players on the edge; add to that a tackle machine like Ford in the middle, and the Warriors just left no avenues open for the Cowboys to target, except that first try with some lazy marker work. I want to see this defensive attitude remain against the Storm this week, as we all know they have plenty of points in them. 

However, I did have one concern, which brings me to my negative from the game.

Match Negative

I've watched the match several times and have struggled to find anything that concerns me, so I will discuss the sin-binning. We have seen some head-scratching sin-bins in the NRL's history, but the ones against Chanel Harris-Tavita and Chad Townsend are a new low. CHT shouldn't have dropped the ball on Chad, as it was just poking the bear. Still, it should never have led to 10 in the bin, at worst it should have been a pull aside by official Ziggy Przeklasa-Adamski with him telling them to stop the niggle but in all honesty, it looked like Ziggy was starting to lose control and went from 0 to 100 to make a statement. Thankfully, the game was over anyway, but it shows why Ziggy has spent most of 2024 as a touch judge, so he should go back to the sidelines.

Warrior of the Match

My Warrior of the Match goes to Te Maire Martin.

There were a bunch of players that I could have picked here, but out of the Warrior's seven tries, TMM threw the final pass in five of them and assisted in a 6th with a kick, so I gave him the nod. He directed the side around the park well, and while he may not have Shaun Johnson's kick power, he makes up for that with an accurate short kicking game that either creates scoring opportunities or creates pressure. I was concerned when he was given the keys when SJ went down, but he has been nothing but fantastic since then. While we are all looking forward to SJ returning and waiting to hear if he will play on in 2025, I can say I am confident in a TMM-led Warriors in 2025 if SJ decides to hang the boots up. We just need to see how TMM can keep adding impact to the Warriors' attack when Johnson takes the keys back.

Warrior to Improve

I have no Warrior to improve this week, as I couldn't find any player in the 17 who let the side down.

Not everyone was perfect, but they all gave it 100%, which is all we can ask for.

Next Round Thoughts and Prediction

The Warriors return home for Round 15 to host the Melbourne Storm, who, in Round 14, held on to defeat the Knights 36-28.

Regarding the team I would pick, the rumours are that Shaun Johnson will be ready to go, so I would bring him back into the halves and move Chanel Harris-Tavita to the bench, replacing Freddy Lussick, since I think CHT can cover hooker and essentially any other back position. The rest of the 17 I would keep the same.

The Storm are sitting at the top of the ladder, and deservedly so, with some hard-fought wins this year, including that heartbreaker in Round 2, where they beat the Warriors in the dying stages. However, they have also lost some matches that many did not expect and will be without Ryan Papenhuyzen and Cameron Munster, which makes them slightly less dangerous. You can never take the Storm lightly, but if the Warriors can bring a similar gameplan that we saw against the Cowboys to this match in front of yet another sellout Mt Smart crowd, then they have a massive opportunity to earn their third top-four scalp. Perhaps it's the buzz of the past month, but I am coming in confident, so I have picked a Warriors win by 8.

So, that was a great Round 14, but as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

What changes would you make to the 17?

Did you have a player to improve?

Where on the ladder do you think the Warriors will end the 2024 season?

What is your score prediction against the Storm?