NZ Warriors 2019 Season Review: A giant step backwards for Warriors

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With the 2019 NRL Grand Final so close I decided it was the perfect time to comb through the Warriors year and conduct my season review.
Warriors fans were hoping to see the New Zealand side build on 2019's top eight finish with another top-eight finish, but it wasn't to be as the Warriors slumped to 13th on the ladder in a season to forget.
2019 was filled to the brim with talking points, so let's just get into the review.

My take on 2019

Despite the Warriors poor showing in their single playoff match in 2018, I came into 2019 confident that the Warriors could have back to back years in the playoffs predicting a 7th place finish by the Round 25 and I was well and truly wrong with the Warriors ending the season 13th.

Looking back at my season preview, I highlighted the Warriors biggest strength being their back three and their biggest weakness being their defence and I was correct on both counts.

Questions loomed over how the Warriors would perform without Simon Mannering and Shaun Johnson. It's fair to say they missed Mannering's experience and Johnson's game-breaking ability throughout the season and the club still has a lot of work to do to fill the void left by both players.
The Warriors started the season on a high with an empathic 40-6 victory over the Bulldogs, and it looked like the fans were going to be in for a good year. Still, those hopes came crashing down with back to back heavy defeats to the Tigers and Sea Eagles, after this the Warriors had several close encounters but struggled to get across the line, only managing 6 wins and a draw in the next 16 matches.
Despite not securing many victories, the Warriors remained in the playoff hunt, but that was torn to shreds with heavy defeats to the Raiders, Roosters, Sharks and Rabbitohs.
The Warriors did manage a victory over the Raiders in the final round to end the season on a slightly happy note. Still, ultimately 2019 was a huge step backwards with more questions than answers as the club looks to get themselves back on track for 2020.

My Positives for 2019

There wasn't much to praise in 2019, but I have selected my top three positives for 2019.

Ken and RTS Show

After his Dally M winning year, it was hard to imagine Roger Tuivasa-Sheck getting better, but he legitimately performed better in 2019 many times carrying the side on his shoulders.

If the Warriors want to keep RTS past his current contract, then they will need to get the rest of the team to help him carry the load.

One other player that can put his hand up is Ken Maumalo, after spending the majority of his career as a glorified battering ram, big Ken had a breakout year, dominating many attacking stats and finishing third on the try-scorers ladder.

It's no coincidence that Peta Hiku moving to his side of the field increased the big winners try tally, but the pressure will be on him to replicate his form next year.

The emergence of Rookies/new signings

2019 was a season to forget, but some of the rookies and new signings did impress me.

The spotlight needs to be one Chanel Harris-Tavita who showed he has all the potential to be a bonafide superstar.

Leeson Ah Mau brought much-needed size to the pack but has plenty of room for improvement, but the signing I was impressed with was Lachlan Burr, for his size he is incredibly mobile and was one of the few Warriors players that were willing to offload the ball.

With no news of any new front-rowers being signed, I would be moving Burr into the prop rotation because his size is needed upfront as opposed to the edges.

Second Phase Delivers

The Warriors didn't do it often, but when they started to offload and utilise second phase football, they showed how difficult they are to stop.

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck's try in the last round highlighted this when they threw the ball around on the last tackle for at least 14 passes.

I have said it before, and I will say it now, the Warriors are at their best when they play off the cuff football. Now it may be heartstopping to witness, but if the Warriors want to return to playoff football, then they need to play to their strengths.

My Negatives for 2019

Unfortunately, there were more negatives, but I have narrowed it down to my 4 most significant negatives.

Lack of Sting

Last year I praised the Warriors for showing more intent on attack, but in 2019 the Warriors appeared to lose sight of that.
They reverted back to one out running and appeared lost on their last tackle options, a big part of this can be directed to the forward's lack of punch.
Blake Green and Kodi Nikorima never seemed to click together in the halves, and neither appeared to want to take control of the side's attack.
The Warriors attack had more direction with Chanel in the halves, so he needs to be starting in the halves next season.

Missed tackles

Missed tackles were another blight on the Warriors season with 7 of their players being in the top 50 by the end of Round 25.
Much like 2018, the Warriors goal-line defence was good, but the Warriors defence around the ruck area was a major letdown, if a team took advantage of the Warriors slow markers then the battle was already won.
I just can't put my finger on it, was it a lack of fitness or a poor attitude that lead to this weakness but it is yet another problem that needs to be addressed before next February.

Home Record

Last season I praised the Warriors away record but this year was one of the worst for the local crowd in Auckland with the Warriors managing only three victories at Mount Smart out of a possible ten.

The NRL is a fierce competition but to be successful, you must win the majority of your home matches, a 30% success rate at your home ground is shocking and simply not good enough if you want to win a premiership.

The Warriors are a long way off that goal right now, and they can add making Mount Smart a fortress to their to-do list.

Interchange/Bench Selection

I could keep going, but my last negative is the Interchange, or more specifically, Stephen Kearney's use of it.

I am unsure of his mindset, but there were several occasions where the Warrior had two or three small players on the bench with one player only getting a handful of minutes at the end of the match as an afterthought.

It may be an old school way of thinking, but a bench of three forwards and a utility/hooker is the way to go.

Nowadays your second rowers have the skill set to move into the centres if an injury forces a backline shuffle, but you need to have some big bodies there to keep your front-rowers fresh and going 100% for the entire game.

Fix the rotation, and the Warriors performances will improve.

My top three Warriors for the season

2019 wasn't fantastic, but three players can end the season with their heads held high.

Ken Maumalo

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What a year 2019 was for Ken Maumalo, leading the Warriors in points, tries, linebreaks and competing with RTS in runs and running metres. 

As mentioned above, having a centre that is willing to give him the ball definitely helped his scoring tally reach an all-time high. Still, it did not prevent him from getting the Warriors rolling with his thunderous runs from deep within the Warriors half.

Winning the Dally M winger of the year award is a fantastic way for Ken to end his 2019 NRL season and I'm hopeful that he will continue to grow as a football player in 2020.

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck

The Captain had another season to remember and was always head and shoulders above the majority of his teammates.

His contribution on attack was sorely needed in a team lacking sting, and his defence kept the Warriors in the fight multiple time.
My biggest concern is that the Warriors are going to rely on RTS too much and break him or even worse see him leave at the end of his contract to go back across the ditch to join a team willing to give him the support he needs.
Recruiting players of value has never been easy for the Warriors, but they need to find players that are willing to share the load or watch him walk away, whether it be from their own backyard, Australia or the UK.

Chanel Harris-Tavita

Chanel Harris-Tavita is still young and raw, but man he is a talent.

In my preview, I selected Adam Keighran has Blake Green's halves partner as I felt that Chanel needed more time to grow and develop. While I think the AK project was pulled prematurely, Chanel delivered excellent performances and was in my eyes the Warriors best performing half in 2019.

He showed composure on the last tackle and made some smart choices with the ball in hand, and his defence was highlight-reel worthy with many of his big shots sure to be used in commercials for the New Zealand side.

The Warriors will need to have Chanel and Kodi Nikorima together in the halves in 2020 if they want to have a shot at the top eight.

My Three Warriors who need to improve

Unfortunately, many players have room for improvement, but to keep it equal, I will narrow it down to three.

Blake Green

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Blake Green, like many, had a year to forget in 2019.

With the exit of Johnson, the pressure was on Green to lead this side around the park, and ultimately he failed.

Sure he had some good moments, slotting the field goal against the Sharks in Wellington being the first that comes to my mind but his decision making on the fifth tackle was lacking and was inexcusable for a player of his experience.

I lost count of how many times Green ran the ball on the fourth tackle meaning he was taking himself out of the last tackle plays, was it a coincidence or was he looking to avoid making the last tackle decisions? I think only Green can answer that, but I think he needs to take a look in the mirror and make a decision on how he wants his career to end.

I would be dropping him for 2020, keep him within the club to pass on his knowledge to the young halves but keep him out of the game day 17.

Isaiah Papali'i

Isaiah had a stellar debut year but was hit by second-year syndrome this season.

His attack was riddled with errors, and his defence was not much better with many penalties and missed tackles littering his season stats.

I think Papali'i was forced into the Simon Mannering role of being a tackle machine for 80 minutes and it did him no favours. There will only ever be one Mannering and while Papali'i has plenty of potential, being pigeonholed into that kind of role will only limit Papali'i's career not enhance it.

On a positive note, Isaiah is still very young and will bounce back from this poor season, with veteran second rowers like Adam Blair and Tohu Harris to learn from, you can expect Papali'i to be a mainstay in this Warriors side for many seasons to come.

Adam Blair

Speaking of Blair, he is my final player to improve.

Adam Blair will always be a controversial player when it comes to discussions amongst fans, some praise his experience and ability to organise defensive lines while others point out the many penalties that he gives away while offering very little in attack.

I sit on the fence, I see the good and the bad with Blair and spent the majority of the season selecting him as my Warrior to improve.

But Blair did show some improvement as the season progressed delivering some strong performance towards the end, but was that improvement enough?

Blair is coming into the final year of his contract in 2020, and I'm hoping that he puts on a strong performance as he strives to earn himself a new contract.

I think the Warriors can use his money elsewhere and should not extend his stay, but if they can squeeze a great final year out of him, I would be happy. 

In Summary

Despite winning more matches this year than they did in 2017, I still feel that this was the worse season for a while.

Perhaps it was due to my belief that the Warriors had built a good foundation in 2018 that would see them make a decent dent in the playoffs, but they folded, leaving a bitter taste in many fans mouths.

I said it towards the end of the season, but something is broken within the club, I hope that the club having sole owners now will help settle the club and they can start making some changes that hopefully breeds success.

This season has been massive in regards to my writing, it's one thing to do this when the Warriors are playing well but writing weekly about a struggling team can really make it tough so thank you to everyone that has stuck with me this year I really appreciate it.

2020 I feel is going to be another tough one, and I feel that the Warriors won't see much improvement, but I do look forward to writing and talking to all of you about it again soo, I'm not sure how much Warriors writing will happen until my preseason review next year as I have my Sports Journalism course to complete, but ideally I would like to do some write-ups on the upcoming internationals.

So that was my take on 2019, and as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

What are your thoughts on the 2019 season?
Who was your player of the year?
Which player was your biggest disappointment?
What realistic changes would you make for next season?
How do you see the 2020 season going?

NZ Warriors 2019 Round 25: Poor season ends on high note with Raiders upset

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After last weeks disappointing final home match, the Warriors made their final journey across the ditch to face a Canberra Raiders side already guaranteed a top-four finish.
Despite the Raiders resting several players, the Warriors were still expected to be handed yet another defeat in what has been a horrible season.
The Warriors did not get memo however as they came from behind to defeat the Raiders 24-20.

2019 has been a horrible year with the Warriors failing to deliver much on the paddock, but it was good to see the team end the season with a victory.
Although the Raider rested some key players, the Warriors also were missing several players with the likes of Peta Hiku, David Fusitu'a and Chanel Harris-Tavita missing the match. So a Warriors team that has struggled for much of the year came into this match missing a fair share of it's attacking threats, but they showed glimpses of what could have been if they were able to perform with some consistency which leads me to my positives.

I have to repeat it, but it was great to end 2019 with a win. This season hasn't been great to write about with this past month probably being the hardest month of reviews I've written.
Writing about heavy loss after heavy loss takes it's toll so this final week was a welcomed change.

The offloads are back, the Warriors had 20 offloads in this match including that highly nerve-racking last tackle run which lead to Tuivasa-Shecks try which went through 13 or 14 passes.
I have said it earlier this year, but when the Warriors throw the ball around they are tough to contain, and if they played with this style more often they would be a dangerous side to compete against so fingers crossed the Warriors embrace this style moving forward.

When the Raiders started to pull away, I began to fear the worst and expected the Warriors to drop their heads and give in like they have done for the past 6 weeks, but they kept themselves in the hunt and kept attacking right to the final whistle.
Once again, it is a case of "where has that attitude been" for the past few months, but it was good to see the Warriors show some heart.

Taane Milne had to wait until the last round, but he finally made his debut for the Warriors and had a solid outing.
He made some massive tackles and didn't overplay his hand on attack. The biggest question I have is why did Stephen Kearney wait so long to bring Milne up. His form in reserve grade has been good from what I managed to see even though most of it was in the second row, but with the Warriors centres and second rowers not really delivering, I believe he could have made an impact a lot sooner.
Moving into 2020 I would have Milne in my gameday 17.

There was still plenty of issues with this performance, though, which leads to my negatives.

The Warriors defence was painful at times, the Raiders scored several soft tries with Josh Hogdson's try just before halftime being an unfortunate spotlight on the Warriors poor marker defence.
There was even a situation in the second half where the Warriors had no markers at all as the tacklers ran back to the defensive line.
I'm not sure if the players lack confidence in each other or are just not talking in the defensive line, but I'm sure it is one of the facets of their game that is at the top of the list to be fixed this upcoming preseason.

The Warriors error rate is still too high, with 8 errors in this match.
I'm a realist and know that if the Warriors throw the ball around like I want to see them do, then the error rate is going to go up.
It's a double edge sword, but just a little bit more respect for the football would keep me handy.

The penalties were still too high for me also, some of the calls were a bit rough but the Warriors have been playing the game long enough to know they have to play to the whistle and make changes depending on how the referees are calling the match.
Having two referees with two different viewpoints doesn't make thing easy, but if the Warriors want to be successful, they need to learn to adapt.

My last negative isn't to do with the Warriors but is about Hudson Young and his eye-gouging of Adam Pompey.
I cannot comprehend why players continue to do things like this when there are cameras directed at every inch of the field.
Young has already been suspended for five weeks this season for eye-gouging and is certain to be looking at possibly double that this time around.
There's no need for this kind of act in the NRL, and hopefully, this will be the wakeup call he needs.

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My Warrior of the match goes to Roger Tuivasa-Sheck.
Tuivasa-Sheck form continued with another strong outing, dominating the Warriors side on attack and saving the team with several key defensive plays.
His ability to keep the opposition second-guessing when he has the ball in hand contributes so much to the Warriors scoring ability, and that was evident in that passage of play that lead to his try. He touched the ball three times in that crazy last tackle play, and you could see the Raiders panic each time he got the ball.
The scary thought is where the Warriors would be without RTS, and hopefully, the team improves sooner rather than later because if they don't, they may lose him.

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My Warrior to improve goes to Isaiah Papali'i.
Papali'i hasn't had the greatest season, and this game was no different, he made plenty of tackles but also missed several important ones that lead to Raiders scoring opportunities.
Papali'i is still very young, and I'm sure he has learnt a lot this season it will serve him well in the future as he grows into a great player for the Warriors.

Well, the season is done now and there no game to preview for next week, but there is the Warriors members forum tomorrow night.
The forum will be interesting after such a disappointing year, and I will be intrigued to see what Cameron George, Stephen Kearney and co say to the members that attend, I'm sure they will have some tough questions directed at them, and hopefully, they give some honest answers.

I aim to have my season review up next week, and it will follow a similar format to how all my reviews have been, with my thoughts on the season overall, players of the year, players to improve, players that are leaving and ideas on where to go from here.
Will be tough to write, but I'm looking forward to putting an end on the 2019 season.

So that's my take on a better Round 25, and as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

Would you have Taane Milne is your 17 for 2020?
Who was your player of the match?
Going into the preseason, what would be your first significant change?
Is there anything you want me to discuss or mention in my upcoming season review?

NZ Warriors 2019 Round 24: Warriors woes continue in last home hit out

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After last weeks embarrassing outing against the Cronulla Sharks, the Warriors made their way back to Mount Smart Stadium for the last time in 2019 to face the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
The Warriors gave their fans hope after a close first half, but it wasn't to be as the Rabbitohs were too strong handing the Warriors a 31-10 defeat.

To be honest, this result was what I expected when I arrived at the Stadium.
Stephen Kearney was vocal during the week, demanding more effort from his side after back to back thrashings and for the first 50 minutes of this match the Warriors did show effort, but they were not able to keep that going for the whole 80 minutes.

The Warriors showed the best and the worst they had to offer in this performance, at times manhandling the Rabbitohs massive pack but then letting themselves down with poor discipline and substandard defence.
Poor attacking options as the pressure mounted did the Warriors no favours and must be one of the top priorities to fix in the upcoming months as the club prepares for 2020.

It was by no means great performance, but after the past month, it was at least an improvement which shows how poor the Warriors have been in 2019 when a 21 point defeat is an improvement.
I think the team and fans alike will be looking at putting 2019 behind them after the last match against the Raiders, but it is only the beginning as there is plenty of work to do to get this broken club back in order.

There wasn't much, but I do have some positives from the match.

The Warriors showed intensity once again. Unfortunately, it was only in patches, but the Warriors were driving the Rabbitohs ball carriers backwards and really forcing them to work to get out of their own half.
If the Warriors could deliver that intensity for every tackle of every set for 80 minutes, then these heavy defeats would be a thing of the past.

The Warriors first half showed that they could compete with a top-four side, they were down 14-0 halfway through the first half but bounced back quickly with the only tries they scored in the match.
When the opposition piles on points the Warriors have been found guilty this season of dropping their heads, so it was good to see them attempt to keep in the match, admittedly only for 50minutes.

My biggest concern going into this match was that Damien Cook was going to have a field day against the Warriors.
All year the Warriors ruck defence has been exposed, but they were able to keep Cook relatively quiet if Cook was able to play his typical game then I'm confident that the score would have been significantly larger.

Unfortunately, there were several problems in this performance, which leads me to my negatives.

It was good to see the intensity return, but the Warriors only showed up for 50 minutes.
The NRL is a fierce competition where any team can win on their day, but to do so, they need to play for the entire 80 minutes.
Warriors need to also address this in the upcoming offseason if 2020 is going to be better.

The Warriors discipline was a crucial component in why they were unable to get the win against the Rabbitohs.
Whenever the Warriors gave away silly penalties, the Rabbitohs twisted the knife by taking easy penalty kicks, increasing their lead and dominating possession.
You can try to blame the Referee decisions all you like, but the Warriors need to play to the whistle.

Despite the Warriors starting defensive strong in the first half, they appeared to get lazy in the second half.
They were dropping off tackles and not wrapping the ball carriers up which allowed the Rabbitohs to utilise second phase football which just torn the Warriors defensive line to shreds.

The Warriors fifth tackle options still need plenty of work.
There was really only a handful of good kicks on the last tackle, but the majority of the last play options were woeful kicks or running and dying with the ball.
I still think the only way to improve this facet of the Warriors game is two have Kodi and Chanel Harris-Tavita in the halves together.

The off-field circus continued this week with news that the joint owners are fighting amongst themselves.
As I said last week something at the club is broken. Everything starts at the top so if the owners cannot get on the same page, it is no surprise that Cameron George, Stephen Kearney and the players appear to not be singing off the same songsheet.
There is plenty of work to be done, and I'm sure the club will be bombarded with plenty of questions relating to this at the upcoming member's forum.

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My Warrior of the match goes to Roger Tuivasa-Sheck.
2019 has been poor, but RTS is one of a select few that can hold his head up high.
This wasn't his best outing, but he was still head and shoulders above the rest of his team. Always dangerous with the ball in hand and he saved his side with several desperate defensive displays.
Hopefully, for his sake, the rest of the team will help him in 2020 as he cannot continue to carry this side for another season.

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My Warrior to improve goes to Kodi Nikorima.
Kodi showed some glimpses of promise in the first half, mainly his nice run and kick for Ken Maumalo's try but he disappeared in the second half.
The pack didn't help matters, but the Warriors really needed Kodi to give the backline some attacking options, and he just didn't deliver.
After the match Rabbitohs coach Wayne Bennett endorsed Nikorima as a valuable player that has not shown his best yet due to the mid-year switch and that with a full preseason under his belt we will see an improved Kodi for 2020.
I genuinely hope the super coach is right.

Im sure the players and fans alike will be looking forward to this season-ending, but there is still one game to go.
Round 24 sees the Warriors head to the Australian capital to face the Canberra Raiders.
The Raiders have been on a tear in 2019 and have already humbled the Warriors and will look at doing it again to cement their top-four spot.
I am hopeful that the Warriors will show up to play and make a statement in their last match of the year, but I can't see them defeating the Raiders, so I'm picking the Raiders to win by 30.

So that was slightly improved but ultimately disappointing Round 24 and as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

Who was your player of the match?
With the issues on and off the field, how would you attempt to fix the club?
Now Koroisau off the table now, which off-contract player would you be targetting (if any)?
What is your score prediction for the final match of the season?