NRL 2016 Round 1 Review – Slow Start breaks Hearts

Copyright Photo: Paul Seiser / www.photosport.nz

The Vodafone Warriors kicked off the 2016 NRL Season in the way they have since 2009 with a loss going down 34-26 to Wests Tigers in Campbelltown.

The team carried a lot of expectation on their shoulders leading into this game and by halftime it appeared to be all but over with the Tigers leading 28-4.

The Warriors attempted a comeback and made it a two point game at 28-26, Shaun Johnson tried some last ditch magic with 80 seconds remaining but it was unsuccessful as James Tedesco collected the football from Shaun’s chip and chase and ran 60 metres to score to end the game 34-26.

The issues the Warriors had in 2015 reared their head again in this game as the Warriors defence was severely lacking and this needs to be turned around otherwise it could be another long season.

The team did show that they could still score points they just need to reduce the errors and not let teams get away to big leads as playing catch-up football is never a good situation for them to be in.

Calls for Andrew McFadden’s head started up again as early as halftime and only intensified in the days after this loss and to be honest I am over it.

The Warriors fans and media’s answer to bad results is always to sack someone, most of the time that someone being the coach.

History has showed that firing coaches at Mount Smart has never really solved any problems.

It is only round one and the season is nowhere near over, the Warriors know what to do and it will be a bad season if they continue to make the same mistakes but if they fix the defense and error rate they will make a dent in this competition.

If you look at the results from Round One in 2015, five of the eight final series teams suffered defeat with the Grand Finalists teams both being dealt large losses.

The Brisbane Broncos lost 36-6 to the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the 2015 Champion North Queensland Cowboys lost 28-4 to the Sydney Roosters, not to mention the Cowboys lost the next two games as well.

So I think everyone needs to pump the brakes and give this team a chance to improve.

My player of the game was Bodene Thompson.

He came in to the game earlier than expected with the heart breaking injury to Ben Henry (News today is he has suffered a broken Patella and no word on when he will be returning yet) and he made an immediate impact and provided some starch to the defensive line.

My player who most needs to improve is Issac Luke, Issac seemed to me to not be that interested.

The Warriors need his intensity and his nippy runs from dummy half.

He is a tremendous player and I’m sure he will come back stronger in Round 2.

Round 2 brings another away game, this time visiting Brisbane and playing the 2015 runner up Broncos.

The pressure is on the Warriors to come back strong after Round 1’s lacklustre performance and the Broncos will be looking to send the Warriors back across the Tasman with a 0-2 record.

Both teams have impressive backlines but this game will come down to the battle of the forwards, the Warriors will need to come in hard and fast and get the momentum rolling to unleash their backline.

I’m looking forward to this game and hopefully I will writing about the Warriors first win of the competition next week.

Look out for the battle between Ben Matulino and Sam Thaiday to take front and centre stage and I’m also interested in seeing how Corey Oates will go after an amazing game last week and if Manu Vatuvei can contain him and vice versa.

Let’s bring on Round 2 and see you next week.

Nz Warriors 2016 Season preview – The Holy Trinity and in Hoffman we Trust

Image www.photosport.nz & www.warriors.kiwi

We are now a week away from the start of the 2016 Telstra Premiership.

The Nines have come and gone, the preseason matches are all over and it’s time for the real deal which also means it’s time for me to give my thoughts on how the Warriors will perform this season.

I’m going to break this review into sections regarding preseason results and news, signings, the squad, strengths, weaknesses and then final with my prediction.

Now this is all just my own thoughts and if you disagree that is fine, I would love this to start a discussion on here so if you have your own thoughts comment below and let me know.

Preseason News - In Hoffman we Trust

The Warriors lost the last 8 games of the 2015 season and failed to reach the playoffs for the fourth season in a row.

Rumours of Andrew McFadden being fired and Ivan Cleary returning were rife and as of writing this, they appear to still be just rumours.

If the Warriors fail to perform this season though I believe that this rumour may become true.

The Warriors had a bit of a mixed bag this preseason, they reached the final of the Nines before getting handed a 22-4 defeat from the Parramatta Eels.

They followed up the nines campaign with a 40-18 victory over the Gold Coast Titans and ended the preseason with a 46-10 loss against the St George Illawarra Dragons.

From what I was able to watch the Warriors showed a lot of promise but just let errors get in the way, Errors were a big problem last season so if they can reduce those they will be able to use the flair the possess and leave a lot of teams sweating.

Then Simon Mannering must have read my 2015 Season review on here because he has stepped down as Captain and Ryan Hoffman has been given the role, a role I thought he should have taken the moment he was signed.

I think this is more integral to the team’s performance this season than the formation of the Holy Trinity (More on that below).

Simon is a terrific player and will go down in the history books as one of the greatest Warriors players ever, but as a captain he left a lot to be desired, the Warriors need a vocal leader there was so many times when I was watching games and when the Warriors were huddled under the posts after being scored against Simon wasn’t talking he was just standing there, Ryan will bring a complete skill set as a leader much in the same vein as Steve Price.

Key Signings – The Holy Trinity is born

The Warriors took a journey to the bank vault and made some big signings; with the signings of Issac Luke and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck they now boast the Kiwis spine and arguably one of the top spines in the NRL.

This Holy Trinity of Shaun Johnson, Issac and Roger is a mouth-watering prospect and if these three can combine effectively the Warriors are going to rip teams apart but Issac and Roger have overshadowed the man I believe is the key signing this year in Jeff Robson.

Jeff is an experienced half and I think he is going to come in and lead this team around the park and free Shaun up to do all the amazing things that he is good at, a situation much like the pairing of Scott Prince and Benji Marshall or even the combination the Warriors use to have with Shaun and James Maloney.

I believe one of the key things the Warriors should do this year is taking some of the responsibilities of Shaun so he can just be Shaun, another thing they need to do is give the goal kicking duties to Issac.

As shown after his injury last season this team needs Shaun fit and firing and by freeing him up to use his flair it will do nothing but strengthen the Warriors chances of winning the Premiership.

2016 Squad

The Warriors 2016 squad is among the best in the NRL.

Big hardworking forwards like Ben Matulino are going to be key in getting to the go forward required to let the back line fire.

The depth is impressive with lots of players fighting for spots in the game day 17, as of today Andrew McFadden has even stated that he has not finalised his centres with Blake Ayshford, Konrad Hurrell, Tuimoala Lolohea and Solomone Kata all performing well at training.

In my opinion, Konrad needs to be there, he was overweight and unfit last season and it showed in his sub-par performances but he has arrived for the 2016 season in the best shape of his life and he needs to be rewarded for his hard work, but his defense can be lacking and this may open the door for Blake to take his spot.

Lolohea also has to be in the mix, he is simply too talented to not make the 17 the only question is what position he playing.

If I was selector this would be my 17

1. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck                      14. Thomas Leuluai

2. Tuimoala Lolohea                           15. Albert Vete

3. Konrad Hurrell                                16. Sam Lisone

4.Solomone Kata                               17. Ben Henry

5. Manu Vatuvei

6. Jeff Robson

7. Shaun Johnson

8. Jacob Lillyman

9. Issac Luke

10. Ben Matulino

11. Ryan Hoffman

12. Bodene Thompson

13. Simon Mannering

Strengths and Weaknesses

The most obvious strength is the attacking flair this team possesses, they can just about score from anywhere.

Strong forwards that can offload to dynamic runners leads to some exciting moments and make the Warriors a very hard team to beat when they are on.

The weaknesses are that when they are not on they can be brutally horrible to watch.

They were one of the top teams last year for errors and you cannot expect to be successful in the NRL if you make consistently make silly mistakes.

The defense can always be an issue; poor tackling and poor defensive positioning can cause headaches for the fans but Justin Morgan being brought into the coaching staff will help improve this facet of their game.

My 2016 Prediction

The Warriors have a really strong side this season and should finally get back into the playoff picture.

If they work on their weaknesses and that spine starts to fire on all cylinders then the Premiership can be theirs for the taking.

I think the Warriors will finish between 4 and 6 this season and make a long run into the playoffs, hopefully, they go all the way but I feel that this team will win the 2017 premiership after having a season together ironing out the kinks.

Now that is over and done with let’s bring on the season, I am going to do a write up of each Warriors performance throughout the year so a new piece will be up after Round 1.

If you like what I’m doing here please share this blog out with your friends and talk to me in the comments, I love this team and the NRL and I would love nothing more than to talk about the season with all of you.

Talk to you all again soon.

My Thank You List For 2015

Wow 2015 has flown by just like that.

It feels like I was sitting down a few days ago writing my thank you list for 2014, now I know it is already 2016 now and I was planning on having this up before 2015 ended but I was too busy enjoying my holiday break with friends and family to get it up earlier.

I turned 30 in March of 2015 and it meant so much to me because four years ago I was told by my Doctor that I would not reach 30 due to my excessive weight (I was 192Kgs or 423Lbs at that time) but with help and support I got to a healthier weight and saved my life.

I cannot even begin to thank my family and friends enough for all the help and support they gave me through that phase and I can honestly say I would not be here today if not for them.

But onto 2015

I’m thankful  for the new role I took on at my work, I have really enjoyed the change and think it is helping me progress my skills and it is amazing to have a job that I look forward to going to and not having to bitch, complain and vent about it when I get home.

Thank you to my boss and the ladies in the team for making me feel so welcome and also for letting me be the person I am.

I’m thankful that my friends brought two children into the world this year and both are healthy and amazing little kids.

I’m thankful for the new house I moved into this year, I really love the peace and quiet we have in our little neighbourhood and living here has made me so much happier.

I want to thank my family for all the love and support you have given me through the good and bad of 2015, we have gone through a lot and it has made us all stronger people and the light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter.

I’m also thankful to have had my great grandmother for so long and as sad as it is that she passed away this year, she made it to 102 years old and passed away peacefully in her sleep, you have taught me so much and you will always mean the world to me.

I want to thank my friends also, I know I’m not the best at staying in regular contact but you all are so important to me and I hope to always be here to support you just like you all do for me.

All of my friends and family inspire me every day and I want to make all of you proud.

I don’t think I’ve found my calling yet but I know with the love you all give me I will find it.

Thank you to my ex for the great memories we shared this year, thank you for showing me love in times when I didn’t believe I could be loved.

You taught me a lot about myself and you were my first love and I know part of me will always love and care for you.

I truly hope 2016 gives you all you wish and more.

And finally thank you to all of you that read my blog.

I can admit that I still have no idea what this blog is actually meant to be for me.

In 2016 I aim to have a lot more activity on here, When the Warriors season starts I will have a review each week of the game played each round and I will also try to some personal/uplifting blogs uploaded regularly too and I may even get into writing poetry again.

If there is any thoughts, ideas or suggestions you have for what you think should be up here just comment and let me know.

2015 we are all done and dusted, I thank you for all the good times and I thank you for all the hard patches that have made me stronger.

2016 is here and it is going to be amazing, I have my trip overseas in February, the Warriors start playing in March so let’s bring it on!!!!