Source: Radio New Zealand
Erin Clark scores a try for the Warriors against Gold Coast Titans. Andrew Cornaga/Photosport
Analysis: Seeking to build on their historic win over Melbourne Storm last week, NZ Warriors have banked two points against pesky opponents, without quite reaching the same dizzy heights.
Gold Coast Titans arrived at Go Media Stadium with wins in their three previous visits and 50 points in last week’s outing against Parramatta Eels. They left with a 28-20 defeat that saw them rattle on 16 unanswered points in the final 15 minutes, but run out of time to complete the comeback.
The Warriors were clinical through the opening 40 minutes, leading 22-0 at halftime, but were somewhat guilty of taking the foot off the throat, when 28-4 ahead.
“There were some good moments for us tonight,” coach Andrew Webster said. “We played some of our best football at times … there were some moments we’d quite like back and weren’t proud of.
“I knew the boys weren’t going to take the Titans lightly, because they’re fearless and we’ve been bitten too many times. They gave us exactly what we knew – they weren’t scared, they came hard at us and they were going to come up with something out of nothing.
“I don’t think it was anything like last week, but we did some good things. One of our favourite sayings is, ‘We’d rather win and learn than lose and learn’, so we get to do that tonight.”
Here are some key takeaways from the Warriors’ latest win.
Best player
Speedy winger Alofiana Khan-Pereira crossed the Tasman looking for a new opportunity, after falling out of favour with Gold Coast Titans coach Des Hasler last season.
Only the previous season, he led the NRL in tryscoring with 24 from 21 games, after 20 in his 2023 debut campaign.
Alofiana Khan-Pereira scores a try in the corner against Gold Coast Titans. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
Khan-Pereira had to wait until round six to make his first appearance for the Warriors, but wasted little time showing his new fans his attacking expertise, as he ran in a try double against his old Titans outfit at Mt Smart.
“He’s fitted in and bought into what we’re doing,” Webster reflected. “He’ll be really proud of some moments tonight – I thought both wingers scored some good finishes – but he’s got high standards and he’ll have a look at some things he’ll want to improve on.
“I think everyone always thinks it’s this great motivation to play against your old team and you should put a player in, because he’ll want to win.
“They probably often get it wrong, because they’re overthinking… thinking too much about getting it over their opposite number and not doing their job. We spoke to him about that this week, because it wouldn’t have been easy for him.”
Front-rower Jackson Ford continued to wrack up Dally M points and will likely still lead the standings after this performance, again pacing his team in running metres (226) and tackles (48).
“When you’ve got a guy like Jacko Ford out there, it does a lot for everyone around him,” skipper Mitch Barnett said. “He helps your interchange, because he just stays out there.
“He keeps going, keeps leaving people on the ground, he’s in every kick chase and doesn’t miss his assignments. His confidence probably hasn’t always been there through his rugby league journey, but he’s found a home here and seeing him play this style of footy – I’m happy for him.”
Jackson Ford again led the Warriors in tackles and running metres. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
Lock Erin Clark had perhaps his best game of the season, with a hand in a couple of key plays on attack and defence.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck continued to relish his new centre role, assisting on both Khan-Pereira’s tries, while the right edge of Ali Leiataua and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak seem to be forming a strong relationship at both ends.
Key play
The Warriors were on top, but had only four points on the scoreboard, when Titans front-rower Kurtis Morrin hurtled towards the tryline and reached out to score.
Replays showed he did not quite reach the chalk, just millimetres short, and you can thank Clark, whose despairing tackle probably saved his team from falling behind midway through the first half, with the wind at their backs.
Moments later, Khan-Periera had his second try and the Warriors had two more before the break, as they built a winning 22-0 lead.
“Up until the 20-minute mark, when Kurtis Morrin goes within a whisker of scoring to level the game up, I thought that would have been a fair reflection of the opening 20,” Titans coach Josh Hannay rued. “Once they got momentum, they made it count.”
Best try
After halftime, the Titans finally opened their scoring, but Clark answered back immediately with a well-worked try very near the same spot he had earlier saved one.
Taking a pass from Wayde Egan at dummy half, the lock went left and found skipper James Fisher-Harris running an angle back towards the posts.
As the front-rower committed two tacklers, he offloaded to Clark looping around behind and no-one was going to stop him that close to the line.
That try and Tanah Boyd’s conversion were the Warriors’ only points into the wind, and probably set the Titans back on their heels enough to put a successful comeback beyond them.
Injuries etc.
After initially naming Barnett and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad among the reserves, Webster gradually brought them back into the playing line-up, as kickoff neared.
Barnett came off the bench with his broken thumb heavily strapped and logged 45 minutes without setback.
“It copped some knocks, and it’s actually good to get a knock on it and realise it’s not that bad,” he quipped.
Mitch Barnett returned from a broken thumb against Gold Coast Titans. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
Nicoll-Klokstad eventually replaced Taine Tuaupiki at fullback and turned in a solid performance.
Second-rower Kurt Capewell also returned from a calf strain and emptied the tank over his 67 minutes. In fact, the Warriors performance seemed to fall away after his departure.
The only obvious health concern during the game saw Leiataua extracted in the 62nd minute for a concussion check, replaced by Jacob Laban, with Leka Halasima moving to centre. Leiataua passed inspection and returned to the fray for the final few minutes.
Egan will face an anxious wait, after he was put on report for a high tackle on Titans fullback Keano Kini during the first half.
Centre Adam Pompey will be available for selection next week, when his suspension ends, but he may now struggle to bust up the Leiataua/Tuivasa-Sheck midfield that has operated so smoothly in his absence.
What the result means
After back-to-back losses, the Warriors now have back-to-back wins to regain some momentum with a 5-2 record.
They climb to second on the competition table, behind Penrith Panthers, and edging Wests Tigers and South Sydney Rabbitohs on points differential. Newcastle Knights, Cronulla Sharks, Canterbury Bulldogs and Sydney Roosters may also join the countback before the weekend is out.
In other words. the competition is still tightly bunched, it’s too early to read too much into ladder positions and another loss could still drop them out of the top eight.
Gold Coast Titans
While this obviously wasn’t the desired result, there was enough here to encourage new coach Hannay that his players are buying into his new culture.
At 22-0, they could very easily have thrown in the towel, but instead came out swinging for the second half, with the wind at their backs, and showed their ability to ignite from anywhere on the park.
“We came here to win, not compete, so we’re disappointed we didn’t win, but it’s a privilege to work with this group,” Hannay confirmed. “They’re growing exponentially – the players, the team, the culture they’re building.
“If they don’t have a strong connection out there tonight, that game gets away from them. They don’t know how to quit and it makes me incredibly proud to coach them.”
They are now 2-5, four points ahead of cellardwellers St George Dragons, but have a bye next, before hosting Canberra Raiders.
What’s next
The Warriors head to Wellington for an Anzac encounter with the Dolphins, who have probably not fulfilled their potential this season, but showed glimpses against the Panthers on Friday, when they rallied from 18-0 down at halftime to force Golden Point and eventually lose to a Nathan Cleary field goal.
The Auckland side haven’t fared particularly well in Anzac fixtures over the years. They won last year against Newcastle Knights in Christchurch, but lost the previous nine, including seven straight against the Storm.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
