NZ Warriors 2020 Round 14 Review: Valiant Warriors take NRL leaders to the limit

After last weeks hard-fought victory against the Sea Eagles, the Warriors made their way back to their makeshift home ground on the Central Coast to face the top of the table Penrith Panthers.

This was always going to be a tough ask for the New Zealand side, especially when Penrith were looking to score their club record-breaking ninth win in a row. However, I think many fans were hoping that if the Warriors could not walk away with the win that they at least show a bit of fight. And fight they did as the Warriors agonizingly went down 18-12.

 

The Warriors new attitude has been a shining light the past four weeks, the Panthers have been building this year and look like they could go all the way and the played that way in this match, starting the game strongly, dominating possession and territory. Nathan Cleary terrorized the Warriors and kept them camped in their own red zone forcing repeat sets. The Warriors goal-line defence withstood many attacks, but eventually, the points started to come. 

The Warriors kept themselves in the hunt though scoring just before the break and scoring the only tries in the second half. I think they were a little hard done by on one occasion when Stephen Crichton snatched a try saving intercept from what looked to be an offside position, a tough call for sure but one that wasn't even mentioned anywhere after the match.

The loss was hard to take with the chances of a top-eight finish eroding, but I think the Warriors will walk away from this match with confidence and their tough draw no longer looks that bad.

Originally I had picked the Warriors to only get one more win this season, and that was the upcoming match against the Bulldogs, however now I think the Warriors could quite possibly win the majority of their final matches, with the hardest one being their round 19 encounter against the Raiders.

Will they make the eight, no I don't believe so but the end of the season is not going to be as dire as I thought.

Before I move on, I just want to mention the fans that were kicked out of the grounds for allegedly hurling racist taunts to Brent Naden. There is no place for that in the game, and I hope they get punished, life ban from grounds or something. Unfortunately, it took the sheen of a good Warriors performance and was the only talking point at the end of the game.

There was a lot from this match that brought a smile to my face, which leads to my positives from the game.

When the Warriors were down 16-0, I was worried, I thought that after all the hard work the Warriors had done the past few weeks to be a more competitive team was about to go down the drain.

But that newfound grit started to shine, and the Warriors clawed their way back into the match and could have easily snuck away with the win. With everything that has gone on this year, it's great to see the Warriors ear respect from the commentators and opposition alike. However, I was a bit disappointed that their performance barely got a mention in any of the wrapup shows from across the Tasman.

I will be talking about the Warriors defence a bit later, but I want to highlight the Warriors goal-line defence. It felt like the Warriors were camped on their own goal-line for an age and the Panthers have shown how dangerous they can be with the ball in hand, but the Warriors refused to let them stroll over without working for it.

That type of effort comes down to attitude, and hopefully, it is a sign of what's to come for the rest of the season and beyond.

Again I thought the Forwards did well, due to constantly having to fight out of their own half they struggled to get the big numbers, but against a more experienced pack, the young guns stood up. I look at 2020 as a character-building exercise for the younger players, and I think the Warriors pack is going to be stronger for it next season.

The halves pair continued to grow chemistry and are meshing well. There is still a long way to go, but I think Kodi and Chanel complement each other, and I look forward to watching Chanel take more control of the kicking game when he grows in confidence.

Before I move on I just need to mention Chanel separately, that kid has heart in spades, and his tackle on Liam Martin will be included on highlight reels for years to come. I love watching him throw himself into tackles, I wince because I worry that he is going to hurt himself, but so far he hasn't, and it's great to see him trying to turn a game in the Warriors favour when the pressure is on. He is a star in the making and will be a cornerstone of this Warriors club for many years.

I did have some issues, however, though, which brings me to my match negatives.

I praised the Warriors goal-line defence but everywhere else on the park the Warriors were woeful. They ended the match with 42 missed tackles their highest tally for weeks. If it wasn't for some good scrambling defence, the Panthers could have opened the game wide open.

Reduce the missed tackles and increase your chances to walk away with the much needed 2 points.

The Warriors could have got the win here, but they let themselves down with errors, making 12 in total. 

There were several in the final stages of the match when the Warriors really needed to wrap the ball tight and get themselves into scoring positions.

Was it weather, fatigue, trying too hard or overthinking Im not sure but they need to show the ball more respect this week.

The Panthers had the lions share of the football due to some smart plays, but the Warriors made matters worst by handing Penrith more possession through penalties and ruck infringements.

They conceded 7 penalties and 6 ruck infringements which is way too much against the best team in the league right now. Yes some of the calls against them were suspect but effort to cry foul.

Thankfully it is something that can be worked on, and I expect to see a more disciplined performance this Sunday.

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My Warrior of the match once again goes to Tohu Harris.

Harris has been fantastic this season and lead from the front yet again, leading the Warriors in tackles (58) and running metres (142).

I hope that the young players in the camp are using this COVID situation to absorb everything Harris does throughout the week in regards to training and prep and it results in a stack of forwards that deliver consistently every week.

Rumours were circling throughout the week that Harris is looking to leave the club, he has disregarded this news but with his contract expiring at the end of next season, the Warriors will need to start working on ensuring he stays with the club for longer as he will be a massive loss if he decides to move on.

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My Warrior to improve goes to Isaiah Papali'i.

I was almost tempted to give everyone a pass this week but Papali'i stood out for me for all the wrong reasons.

After not making the side for several weeks, Papali'i finally got the call up with Jack Hetherington being suspended and it was his time to make a statement as he looks to earn a new contract.

Unfortunately, he didn't do much to show the club that he needs to be kept on, he appeared slower than usual and didn't offer anything on attack and made several poor defensive reads. I feel that his time at the club is at an end and the best thing for both parties is to move on, I'm sure with a new start at another club we will see Papali'i grow and utilise the promise that he use to show, he just seems to be in a rut right now.

Round 15 sees the Warriors travel to ANZ Stadium to face the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in a rare return to Sunday afternoon football.

Despite the Bulldogs languishing at the bottom of the table, they have been battlers all year and have been every team really work for their wins this year.

I think the Warriors will get the win this week, but this could be a speedbump game and the Warriors can not come into the match underestimating the Bulldogs.

If the forwards can gain the upper hand, it should allow Kodi and Chanel plenty of time to get the backline into scoring opportunities.

I'm picking the Warriors to win this match by 12.

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

Do you think the Warriors are heading in the right direction for 2021?
Where do you see the Warriors ending up on the ladder?
Who was your player of the day?

What is your score prediction for the Bulldogs clash?

NZ Warriors 2022 Round 13 Review: Warriors clip injured Sea Eagles wings in rain-soaked encounter

After last weeks close encounter against the Tigers, the Warriors made the journey to drenched Lottoland to face the Manly Sea Eagles.
With the Warriors being featured in the news all week for everything but this match up it would be fair to assume that the New Zealand side may have not been up to the challenge. However the Warriors newfound toughness shined through with the team walking away with hard-fought 26-22 victory and their first back to back wins since 2019. 

Despite predicting a Warriors win, I can honestly say I had my doubts that they would be able to show up after the week they had. Those doubts subsided just seconds into the match when George Jennings and Chanel Harris-Tavita dragged Daly Cherry-Evans over the sideline with the first tackle of the game. The points started to flow, and it looked like the Warriors were going to win comfortably, but when Karl Lawton was sin-binned, the momentum switched, and the Sea Eagles forced themselves into the game. The Warriors didn't dropped their heads and regained control and were able to hold onto to the lead despite Jack Hetherington also going to the bin for a high shot on Martin Taupau. The weather did neither side any favours, but I think it suited the Warriors more aggressive mindset, they look to enjoy getting into a tussle now and hopefully, this means we will not see any more blowouts this season.
I cannot fault the Warriors new mindset, they have been through plenty of drama and challenges this year, and it appears to have made the side mentally tougher and unbelievably they are slowly edging themselves in playoff discussions. Now I still think their draw is too tough, but I'm more than happy to be wrong on that call. You cant go overboard though, Manly were depleted and lost Fonua-Blake and Taupau during the match so the Warriors should have walked away with the win.

Todd Payten appears to have rallied this side together, and it is a shame that he rejected the Head Coaching role as I think he had shown some good qualities. However, I understand his decision and hope the team finish the year strong and send him out on a high note. 

There was a lot from this match that brought a smile to my face, which leads to my positives from the game.

Firstly, the Warriors grit was outstanding, playing a quarter of this match with only 12 players should have gifted the Sea Eagles the win but right now the Warriors are showing plenty of resilience. During the match, Brent Finch was shown on the sidelines. Todd Payten advised that he has been brought into the camp and is speaking with the players, showing them some hindsight about the situation they are in and how they will look back at this time and realise how good it was to be "in camp" with the squad for the entire season. I think that this has made the side closer, and while we have seen some of the benefits this year, I feel that the Warriors will reap the rewards of this situation for seasons to come.

With Blake Green leaving for Newcastle on Tuesday, I finally got the halves pairing of Kodi Nikorima and Chanel Harris-Tavita that I had been asking to see since early on in 2019. In their first outing together I think you could give them a pass mark. They weren't perfect but showed plenty of promise. Nikorima looked more comfortable on the right-hand side and had some nice kicks, Chanel was a bit rusty after having limited time on the field but will be good for the run, and I expect to see him grow with the extra responsibility. The Warriors appeared to have more options on last tackle and showed plenty more on attack, which is what we have all been asking for. 

I thought the forward pack was strong once again, they didn't hit the big numbers like they did last week, but they edged Manly in the battle up the middle. Losing some experience men in the middle didn't help the Sea Eagles, but I think the young Warriors pack have built into a tight unit and the experience the younger talent like Jamayne Taunoa-Brown have got this season will make them stronger players next season. With the addition of Ben Murdoch-Masila and Leeson Ah Mau and Bunty Afoa returning from injury, the Warriors will have a pretty decent pack.

The backline looked more threatening this week, George Jennings looked a lot more comfortable this week, and he is yet another loan player that I wouldn't mind the Warriors keeping hold of. I'm not sure if that is down to the exit of Green, allowing a more attacking style or if the backs are just started to mesh well and enjoying playing behind a dominate pack. I was worried when Ken Mauamalo and David Fusitu'a left the camp, but I'm enjoying how this current setup is working out.

There were some issues, though, which brings me to my match negatives.

The Warriors discipline let them down in this match, most notably the two sin bins but they also conceded six penalties and seven ruck infringements. With a tough game this week and a brutal run home, the Warriors cannot gift their opposition any let-offs so play to the whistle and reign in the aggressive hits just a tad.

Lastly and once again I need to point out the missed tackles, the Warriors missed 31 in this match, and they were lucky that it didn't cost them in the end. If they don't reduce that stat this week, the Panthers will have a field day. Defence may well play a part in if the Warriors surprise everyone and make the eight so they need to improve it asap.

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My Warrior of the match was Tohu Harris. 

Harris had yet another strong performance with 214 running metres and 38 tackles and must be a shoo-in for Warriors player of the year. He is head and shoulders above the rest of the pack this year and is continuously bending the opposition defensive line, if the Warriors could get their backs to run off his shoulders more you could see the side really open opponents up and score plenty of points.

It's fantastic to see him step up this year and lead this young forward pack and I hope the club can extend his contract beyond 2021.

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My Warrior to improve goes to Jake Hetherington.

I almost didn't pick a player to improve as I thought all 17 did well but decide at the last minute to pick Jack.

No since his first match as a Warrior I have heaped the praise onto this young forward and have pleaded that the Warriors do everything they can to try and keep him long term. My thoughts haven't changed, and I would love to see him stay with the club longterm, but he had a shocker in this match. 

The high shot on Taupau was obviously a silly decision that could have cost the Warriors the game, but Hetherington also made a few silly errors, he is a talented footballer, but he needs to work on his discipline and his hands.

He is off to the judiciary for the high shot (his sixth appearance in what has been a short career to date) and will be gone for a minimum of four weeks. His loan deal runs out in two, and it sounds like the Panthers will be bringing he back to their camp while he is on suspension, so this match may have been Hetherington's last game in Warriors colours.

If that's the case, thank you for your contribution this year, and I still have my fingers crossed that you jump the ditch.

Round 14 sees the Warriors return to their makeshift home on the Central Coast to host the table-topping Penrith Panthers. The Panthers have won eight on the trot and look to be the team to beat in 2020. The Warriors will need to be at their best if they want to walk away with their third win in a row, the Forwards will need to control the middle, and the backs will need to play an expansive style to combat the tough Panthers defence. Unfortunately, I don't see the Warriors getting the win here, but I'm hoping to see plenty of fight from the New Zealand side, so I'm picking the Panthers to win by 16.

Before I go, my thoughts on the recent coaching news. The Warriors have announced that they have signed Nathan Brown as head coach on a three-year deal and have also signed Phil Gould on as a consultant. Brown isn't who I would have gone with (I still would have liked to see the Walker brothers given a shot), but the decision has been made, and we will have to wait and see. He isn't a bad coach by any means and has spent time with the club already, so I genuinely hope it works well. 

The news regarding Phil Gould, however, has me excited. There has been plenty of things Gould has said that I have disagreed with, but there is also a lot that I have sided with him on, and there is no disputing that he has a heck of a football brain on him. The Warriors need help creating pathways with the youth of this country, and he has shown to be able to assist with that if you look at Penrith's system. There is so much talent in this country that is lost to union or to clubs across the ditch so if they can work out a way to keep that talent here, then the Warriors could have a more fruitful future.

Plus with Brown at the helm and Gould helping the club, that may entice players that the Warriors are targeting to sign on the dotted line, after seeing the club lose most of the players they have targeted this year.

So that was an excellent Round 13, and as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

Do you think a top-eight finish is realistic?

What are your thoughts on Brown and Gould's signings?

Who was your player of the day?

What is your score prediction for the Panthers clash?

NZ Warriors 2020 Round 12 Review: Warriors hold off late Tigers surge in upset victory

After last weeks valiant but unsuccessful effort against the Roosters, the Warriors made the trip to the Sydney Cricket Ground to face the Wests Tigers.

Interim coach Todd Payten stated that last weeks performance was to be the Warriors base level and despite a slow start and dicey finish, the Warriors put on a great display to defeat the Tigers 26-20 

I had hope that the Warriors would build on last weeks performance, but I can admit I was a bit concerned when the Tigers scored two tries in the first 12 minutes. My heart sank as I thought the Warriors were going back to their good game, bad game routine. 

However, the Warriors didn't drop their heads. They kept themselves in the hunt with an improved effort by their forward pack which allowed Karl Lawton to have a field day in the ruck area and gave the backline plenty of opportunities which they actually took advantage of more than we have come to expect in 2020.

New loan players George Jennings and Daniel Alvaro had decent debuts for the club without setting the world on fire, which is fine considering the limited game time they have had this year. I think we will see Jennings add plenty of spark to the left edge attack once he develops some chemistry with Peta Hiku, as in this match they just seemed to not be in sync with each other just yet.

Alvaro offers some much-needed experience to the pack, and I expect to see his minutes increase in the upcoming weeks as his match fitness returns.

I feel like this performance adds another feather to Todd Paytens cap and I would be perfectly happy to see the Warriors give him the gig fulltime.

As I said last week, I appreciate his communication and the players appear to be responding to him. 

I know some people want an experienced coach to come in and take over, but if the team is buying into Payten, why not let it play out.

This side appears to be building something special, again I feel like a top-eight finish was gone a long time ago. I feel like the Warriors are going to be more enjoyable to watch for the remainder of the season than I originally anticipated.

There was plenty to smile about in this performance, which leads me to my positives from the game.

The Forwards had a great night with 5 of the pack running for over 100 metres, with Tohu Harris leading from the front with 181 metres.

For years the biggest issue with the Warriors has been the forward pack's inability to dominate the middle, and I think this year has been a step in the right direction especially considering the Warriors have been without Bunty Afoa, Leeson Ah Mau all year.

Jamayne Taunoa-Brown is developing nicely and will be a constant inclusion in the Warriors prop rotation for years to come.

Eliesa Katoa is a bonafide superstar in the making that has not out a foot wring since his debut this season.

And last but not least Jack Hetherington had another strong outing, he spent some time in the second row and looked dangerous on the edge, Warriors, please do whatever you can to keep this man. I think the Panthers would be crazy to let him go but fingers crossed.

The fightback this side showed after being down 8-0 early was encouraging but what impressed me more was the effort the team showed in stopping the Tigers from snatching a last-minute victory.

After the fast start, the Warriors were able to play some smart football and force the Tigers to continually play out of their own red zone, much like what the Roosters did to the Warriors last week.

But it looked like the Warriors got a bit complacent after getting the lead and the Tigers closed the gap, we have seen Warriors sides capitulate in situations like this before, but they kept their defensive pressure up and forced the Tigers to make mistakes preventing a heartbreaking ending.

I think this shows an improved attitude and self-belief that this side has built during what has been a challenging year, some mental toughness has been sorely needed, and this should only mean good things for the Warriors 2021 campaign.

The shackles appear to have been permanently removed with the offloads coming back in abundance.

The Warriors unleashed 18 offloads in this match with Jazz Tevaga leading the team with 6.

This team is a very dangerous side when they are frequently utilising second-phase football.

If they can continue to utilise the offloads more often and get players like Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Kodi Nikorima running off the shoulders of their forward pack. If they can get those faster players into open space will create plenty of scoring opportunities which would put the Warriors in good stead to notch up some more wins.

My last positive was Kodi Nikorima, I thought he had a great game, and it's no secret that the Warriors are at their best when Nikorima engages the defensive line.

During the week the Warriors highlighted the need for Nikorima to get more involved, even going as far as putting money the line if he could double he run total from last week (Nikorima failed, unfortunately, running 15 times when he needed to hit 16).

His kicking game improved this week but is still well behind where he needs it to be, the Warriors need him to continue playing this attacking style and find him a game manager half to partner up with, and I think you will see his performances improve tenfold.

The performance wasn't perfect; however, which leads me to my negatives from the game.

Every week I go on about it, but the Warriors missed tackles, they were above their average this week missing 35. If they want to be a legitimate playoff contender, they need to reduce this by at least 10.

The Warriors at least have some decent scrambling defence which helps keep them in the hunt, but if they don't improve their first up defence, then they will find themselves on the losing side more often then not.

Another ongoing issue is the Warriors ruck infringements, they only had 6 in this match, but that is 6 extra sets that they gifted the Tigers. The six-again rule has changed the landscape of the NRL, and all teams are adjusting, but the Warriors appear to give away new sets a bit more than some of the other clubs.

Cutting this down will help the Warriors starve the opposition of the ball and the less time they have to defend the more likely they can end the match as victors.

My last negative is the Warriors penalty count, they were penalised 9 times in this match, and much like the above comment, that is just handing the Tigers the ball another 9 times. I thought the Warriors were hard done by on a few calls, but they still need to take some responsibility and play to the whistle.

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My Warrior of the match goes to Roger Tuivasa-Sheck.

Much like last week, it was hard to pick just one player for this weeks award, with Lawton, Nikorima and Harris all being just as deserving to be picked but I had to go with the Skipper.

An early error from RTS was the only blemish on his night, but he bounced back to end the match with 279 running metres, 7 tackle breaks, 2 offloads and 2 nice little kicks that resulted in repeat sets.

This is what I enjoyed most from RTS, we all know he can run and gun with the best in the NRL, but the Warriors need him to step up and offer some dimension to their attack and adding a kicking game to his arsenal is a surefire way to do this.

He doesn't need to do it a lot, but if he sees an opportunity to force a repeat set or kick through for one of his centres or wingers to score with a nice little kick, then it only strengthens the Warriors attacking threat.

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My Warrior to improve goes to Adam Blair.

I almost didn't pick a player to improve this week as I thought all the players contributed to the final result, but in the end, I decided to pick Blair.

Todd Payten has been critical of Blair's performances lately, and he hasn't really responded in the way we would have hoped.

I thought Blair started the year strong, however, in the past few weeks, the younger forwards have really shown how far off the pace he is right now.

He only had a limited run of 29 minutes and made 20 tackles, but his 54 running metres from 6 runs and 2 penalties bring down his efforts.

I like having Blair used as a front-rower only, but right now there are players performing better than he is and I would not be surprised if he was dropped for a week or two if his work rate doesn't increase.

Round 13 sees the Warriors head to Lottoland for another dose of Friday night football to face the Sea Eagles. Manly have had some good performances despite playing without their star fullback Tom Trbojevic but were soundly defeated in round 12 by the impressive Penrith Panthers.

The Sea Eagles will be hurting from this result and will be looking at making a statement as they continue to try to claw their way into the top eight.

I expect the Warriors to name the same 17 that played in round 12 and I think they have shown that they are tough enough to get results against the team around them on the table.

With that in mind, I'm predicting the Warriors walk away with the win here in a close-fought contest, so I'm going with a Warriors win by 8.

So that was a better Round 12, and as usual, I will leave you with some questions.

Do you think the Warriors can string some wins together?

What were your thoughts on the new loan players first hit out?

Who was your player of the day?

What is your score prediction for the Sea Eagles clash?