Tui for the Warriors after making a Kiwis appearance? Yup, please.

The NZ Warriors often have an abundance of talent in their backline, however they have relied far too heavily on young, inexperienced players in recent years to fill holes. The signings of guys like Blake Ayshford and Jonno Wright will never light up the NRL, but they do point to a shift in the Warriors' mindset where they now have a few battlers to plug holes.

Depth has usually existed in the Warriors' outside backs stocks, rarely have they had the luxury of 'experienced depth' and with those signings and the growth of younger players, the Warriors now have some fairly intense competition for starting spots.

Fullback

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Tui Lolohea, David Fusitua, Henare Wells

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is understandably the top-dawg of for the Warriors at fullback. Not much explaining needs to be done there, with the funk offered when/if Tuivasa-Sheck is unable to lace up. Tui Lolohea should get the nod as Tuivasa-Sheck's back up and I actually hope this happens at some stage this season as Lolohea has all the attributes to be a gun fullback; he's big enough to take tough carries like Tuivasa-Sheck, he's got all the skills (kicking, passing etc) and has the best rugby league instincts of any Warriors player allowing him to chime in when he sees fit.

David Fusitua has been unable to nail a position in the Warriors' backline which is a bit of a worry, I do like him as a fullback though. Fusitua will have to wait for the stars align (Tuivasa-Sheck injured/suspended/rested with Lolohea in the halves) to get a look at the fullback jersey, he is however a good ball-runner who always pokes his head through the line and is safe under the high ball.

Henare Wells is a fullback option while a young lad to keep an eye on is Tomasi Aoake, who featured in NSW Cup last year while still eligible for Under 20s.

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Wingers

Manu Vatuvei, Tui Lolohea, David Fusitua, Jonno Wright, Ken Maumalo, Henare Wells

Manu Vatuvei is the OG and our favourite Warrior so he's a certified starter. Who joins Manu on the wing is a bit of a conundrum for the Warriors with many blokes capable, but not standing out, demanding selection.

First and foremost, if Lolohea isn't playing in the centres or fullback, he's starting on the wing. In fact, as you'll read below, I've got Lolohea starting on the other wing as this allows others to start at centre and gives Lolohea a bit of freedom to pop up and provide x-factor. Lolohea has to be in the Warriors' top-17 somewhere and I've got him on the wing.

Should either Manu or Tui be absent, then we'll be looking at Fusitua, Jonno Wright and Ken Maumalo as the next best options. Wright appears to be the most solid option, he is very limited though and Fusitua offers a bit more punch, a little oomph so I'd prefer Fusitua over Wright.

Maumalo hasn't shown that he's capable of being a long-term NRL winger just yet, largely thanks to limited opporunities. Maumalo is like a junior Manu and he could take over from Manu one day, he's got a fair way to go before then though.

Wells will also be a wing option.

Centres

Solomone Kata, Konrad Hurrell, Mathew Allwood, Blake Ayshford, David Fusitua, Charnze Nicoll-Klostad

As I said, I'm going all in on starting the season with Solomone Kata and Konrad Hurrell. Kata was one of the more consistent Warriors last season so he's a lock and I like what I've seen from Hurrell in the Nines and All Stars game. Hurrell looks fit and eager and while he's struggled in one of the toughest defensive positions in rugby league, I'm willing to hand the starting jersey to Hurrell and see what he does with it.

Lolohea is there to cover any holes.

Mathew Allwood hasn't really been given much of an opportunity and along with Blake Ayshford they will be putting pressure on Hurrell (and Kata) to perform. I like Allwood as he's a solid centre option who actually looks like a specialist, but unfortunately for him Ayshford has jumped the ditch and it's hard to separate these two.

I would rather see Allwood given an opportunity with Ayshford a decent back-up option should Hurrell and Allwood fail to take their chances.

Fusitua can do a bit of centre and while he's unlikely to feature there - not with Ayshford offering experienced cover, unlike last season - he could make that his niche. The Warriors signed Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad from Melbourne and he looks like a dangerous up and coming centre, he's that perfect combination of size and mobility which is difficult to handle. It's hard to see him getting much NRL time though.