Aotearoa Warriors Diary: Grinding Through Storm, Roosters, Panthers
After grimey losses to Storm and Roosters, the niggle continues for NZ Warriors as James Fisher-Harris returns to a Panthers team who were defeated by Tigers last round. Panthers are back to back NRL champions and they will be fizzing to bounce back swiftly which offers a reminder to keep a lid on expectations. Warriors rarely win Anzac Day fixtures against Storm, there is no shame in losing to Roosters and now it's time to take on Panthers fresh off an upset loss.
Take time to prepare for a string of three losses here. Papatuanuku and Ranginui will swing back in favour of Warriors soon enough, so ease up on judging Warriors from this pocket of three games against the best NRL teams of the past few decades. A key indicator to tap into is Warriors mana which has been evident in every game this season, no matter who isn't playing and no matter how many refes are involved.
Scoring zero points against Roosters was a bummer. Roosters rolled out a comprehensive defensive display against a Warriors team lacking most, if not all of their attacking funk though. Heading into that Roosters game, the disparity in forwards available to each team was clear in the teams named. When playing in the rain, having more quality forwards is rather useful.
Roosters coach Trent Robinson also played his role. When Brandon Smith left the field, Victor Radley shifted to hooker and this gave Roosters a rugged defensive line which consistently dominated tackles. Roosters shuffled closer together, got numerous blokes into tackles and also had Joseph Manu defending in the halves. With Manu in the halves, Roosters had a defensive unit full of big blokes and the only small lad to target was Luke Keary who was able to rush up thanks to slow play-the-balls.
All of that happened with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak playing fullback. He is a third-choice fullback and any team dipping that far into their depth for a spine position will have their attack impacted. Combine that with the loss of Tohu Harris and the passing that has made Warriors dangerous this season vanished.
Playing in the rain didn't help, although Warriors averaged 1.87 receipts per pass against Roosters. That's the same zone as 1.9 vs Sharks, 1.76 vs Bulldogs, 1.79 vs Cowboys and 1.8 vs Storm. Same amount of passing but fullback Watene-Zelezniak and lock Addin Fonua-Blake made five passes each. Fonua-Blake played 75 minutes vs Roosters (!!) and had five passes, while Harris had nine passes in just 39mins vs Storm.
The best Warriors footy appears to feature 10+ passes for Nicoll-Klokstad and Harris. Harris often gives 20+ passes a nudge. Instead of passes mainly coming from Wayde Egan and Shaun Johnson, Warriors are at their best when forwards are passing in the middle. While Watene-Zelezniak is a winger filling in at fullback, Nicoll-Klokstad is a fullback who can pass both directions with natural play-making instincts. Harris meanwhile is as good as Isaah Yeo and Cameron Murray passing the footy.
Warriors are still first for completion on 81% and Panthers are right there on 80%. Coach Andrew Webster came from Panthers and is rolling out the same general style of completing sets, kicking long, whack in defence and passing forwards. Ponder this comparison of the teams coached by Webster, Ivan Cleary and Cameron Ciraldo...
Panthers: 80% completion rate | 207 missed tackles 17th - (lowest in NRL)
Warriors: 81% completion rate | 255 missed tackles (12th)
Bulldogs: 75% completion rate | 317 missed tackles (2nd)
The NSW Cup Warriors offer more learning as their win against Roosters last week saw Ronald Volkman play better than Sam Walker. That came thanks to the Warriors forward pack dominating a Roosters pack with Dylan Napa, Nathan Brown, Siua Wong and Naufahu Whyte. Napa and Brown are NRL veterans still hunting an opportunity, Whyte is a fringe NRL forward and Wong is judged by many Aussies as a top-notch young forward.
17-year-old Selumiela Halasima was better than all of them during his stint in the middle. Then Halasima shifted to centre. Correct, this kid has been among the best forwards in all his NSW Cup appearances and he also did a job at centre. Zyon Maiu'u and Isaiah Vagana also played funky roles as young forwards against fringe-NRL lads, while Tanner Stowers-Smith made his NSW Cup debut in that game and is the third lad to play SG Ball and NSW Cup this season (Halasima, Jacob Laban).
Guided by James Gavet, Paterika Vaivai, Michael Sio, Kalani Going, Nicholas Halalilo etc, the NSW Cup Warriors forward pack has now dominated fringe-NRL forwards three games in a row.
Sean Keppie and Samuela Finau are playing NRL now for Sea Eagles, yet they lost to Warriors. Ofahiki Ogden and Makahesi Makatoa were immense last week in NRL, after they got dominated by the NSW Cup Warriors forward pack. Then the youngsters ripped into a solid Roosters forward pack.
Demitric Sifakula has featured in most of that domination and now he is named for his second game of NRL. Going is getting more extended bench honours as well. These lads promoted from NSW Cup aren't just good players filling holes in the NRL squad, they have been dominating fringe-NRL forwards in reserve grade.
Prior to the NRL game, NSW Cup Warriors face Bears who are one of two teams linked to Roosters. Kurt De Luis and Terrell May are fringe-NRL forwards named. Bears also handed Warriors one of their two losses earlier in the season, sharing a 7-2 record with Warriors and Bulldogs.
Keep tabs on Aussie Ben Farr in the NSW Cup Warriors. The kaumatua forwards combine leadership mana with ruthless power, while Farr is a steady presence in the backline covering every position. Farr isn't an older experienced lad, he's 21-years-old but his composure and team-first approach is flush with veteran class. Far was as a surprise recruit when Warriors started their trials, coming from Wynnum and is named at fullback, having started last round at centre and also covering the halves throughout the season.
Also funky: Paul Roache has played 80mins in six consecutive games, starting four games in a row at hooker. Roache is doing a solid job behind Freddy Lussick who sits behind Wayde Egan. Meanwhile, Taniela Otukolo is playing U21s for Redcliffe after his release from Warriors.
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Peace and love.