On my journey in following the Warriors and penning some thoughts about their shenanigans, one thing has been ever-present. For you, that might be failure or that losing culture that you've cried about for years. For me though, it's expectation and when you ponder that the Warriors have never lived up to expectations; is the problem the Warriors or expectation?
I'm just saying that repeating the same thing that produces failure, is apparently insanity. So why not approach the Warriors with no expectations? 

Why not just wipe aside all expectations from the Warriors and just enjoy the ride?

Here's an example on how to start, I'll walk you through the process...

We can't expect to show up in Newcastle and win. I mean our Warriors have Bunty Afoa on one edge and Isaiah Papalii on the other edge, Afoa is 20-years-old and Papalii is 18-years-old. Instead of having Ryan Hoffman's 33 years of experience on this planet and Bodene Thompson's 29 years of hearty life experience, we have a two usos who haven't even celebrated their 21st birthdays.

Newcastle have hype, meanwhile I've let go of expectations with the Warriors just as Buddha had me releasing the idea of 'self'.  That's to say that Newcastle are trending upwards and the Warriors are trending downwards ... and we're playing over in Newcastle, where the Knights have a top-five fanbase who ride or die. 

I'm still struggling to suss out whether Warriors fans are top-five or if they hate their club?
Newcastle have been building towards a strong finish to their season, while the Warriors have been doing the opposite. It's taken Newcastle plenty of pain to get to a point where they can feel like they're building towards something, I guess all that enduring is what made Newcastle's win last week so special. So as I bid farewell to expectations, I embrace the pain...

Wait, what pain? The Warriors haven't won the wooden spoon and the Warriors aren't in turmoil like the Bulldogs. The Warriors have a stable, wise leadership group and while a club like the Bulldogs have their team reflected the bullshit going down in the boardroom, our Warriors have a foundation that they are slowly building on top of. Fuck those expectations and even if I was living off those expectations, it's not like the Warriors have failed to live up to the hype like Canberra Raiders. The Warriors are tough to beat, unlike the Rabbitohs.

What the Warriors are 'going through' doesn't compare to a gang of other NRL teams.

Mediocrity isn't ideal as we'd all love to shit out excellence, we'd all love to be the Melbourne Storm and what not, but would you rather be worse than mediocre? Would you rather be worse than mid-table? Would you rather be where you are now and full of hope, or hopeless?

A rugged contest against a Newcastle team who are lovin' life, on their home turf is a nightmare match up for the Warriors. Newcastle can play with freedom, because what do they have to lose? Everyone knows their situation and expectations of the Warriors give them a lot to lose. 

What does it matter when the Warriors have 10 polynesian men and one Maori under the age of 25 named to take on Newcastle? 

In the Warriors squad of 22, there's 15 polynesian/Maori men under the age of 25. 
I'm immensely proud that the club I cover in depth places great responsibility in the hands of young polynesian and Maori men, especially when this country has systematically failed young polynesian and Maori men. We only need to look at the negative stereotypes about the Warriors to get an insight into the racist underbelly of Aotearoa.

So what are your expectations?

I even struggle with the idea of expecting the Warriors to play with a certain level of energy, enthusiasm, desire and a certain attitude. Sure, it's nice to expect that from the Warriors but at the end of the day, my expectation is irrelevant because if those players don't showcase those intangibles to Stephen Kearney's required level, they're only hurting their own future prospects.

If the Warriors don't meet those standards, it doesn't make me feel any sort of way and the only people who feel the repercussions are the players themselves. That's a product of circumstance because we're in a phase where Kearney is sussing out which players he wants to hang around, which players he can trust to execute their role in this club moving forward.
No team with 11/17 players under 25yrs is going to dominate the NRL, let alone dominate opposing teams in Australia.

'The Warriors need to win, what they do for the community doesn't matter, they should only care about winning. They shouldn't take care of Kieran Foran and take him in for a year like a kind soul takes in an abandoned puppy, Foran's just gonna leave any way. Why does it matter how many young polynesian men are in the Warriors 'cos those polynesians are lazy and the Warriors need to win right now! ... to make me feel better'.

The Warriors were never going to win a Championship this year. 

They were never going to be a force in the NRL with Kearney at the helm in his first season. 

They were never going to dominate the NRL just because Foran arrived. 

And the Warriors were never going to wipe aside the failings of those before them with a wave of the magic footy wand.

Rid yourself of expectation and you'll find hope. It's better to have hope than to be hopeless folks and hope that the Warriors put their best foot forward over in Newcastle.

Just don't expect it because I can't see a young Warriors outfit with three starters and James Gavet missing, beating the hyped Knights. 

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