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#3466724 4-Mar-2026 15:40

Just to bump this up.. Round 1 (well the remainder) start tomorrow and what a round we have!

Thursday Storm vs Eels - how crazy this plays out 2 days after the two teams battled in court over Zac Lomax?

Friday Warriors v Roosters - Two very good teams with a good rivalry. Then Broncos v Panthers well it doesn't get much bigger than that IMO

Saturday Manly v Raiders - how strange that the very first game Fogarty plays after switching teams is against his old team in Round 1

Sunday Dolphins v Rabbitohs - 2 teams that many are predicting to be top 4. Should be a great game

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JPNZ

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#3467997 9-Mar-2026 08:00

Wow, the warriors looked great on Friday cleaning up the Roosters. Its going to be a long hard season for my heart health if the Raiders keep winning games like that on Saturday.

Some big games this coming weekend:

Warriors v Raiders

Roosters v Rabbitohs

Panthers v Sharks

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jordan8thepie1

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#3470354 14-Mar-2026 23:05

Warriors game was great.

The score bug disappeared in the last few minutes and came back with 20 seconds to spare. It was glitching out at times throughout the game as well.

JPNZ

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#3470762 16-Mar-2026 10:15

jordan8thepie1:

Warriors game was great.

The score bug disappeared in the last few minutes and came back with 20 seconds to spare. It was glitching out at times throughout the game as well.

This is obviously a NZ game issue because it doesn't affect any other NRL games. Its annoying AF

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TeaLeaf

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#3473139 24-Mar-2026 13:59

I think this is possibly the best Warriors reg Season start to date.

What has changed, picking the right players in the right positions ie RTS should have been playing left wing long ago with his ability to step sideways off the left foot, plus the abundance of quality centre we have (all be it two injured now).

Boyd has gotten over 70 fantasy points every game so far with 86 in the last game. I was a big fan of his last year when ppl were writing him off due to how rubbish the Titans were when he was there, but imo that was more Foran's doing than the young half, but Boyd was scape goated. Boyd is now showing what a quality half he is and can be under the right Coach and Culture.

With a bit of a halves issue, it was nice to see Hanson step all the way up from Development squad to 1st Grade fight eighth with CHT failing the Concussion and Metcalf out until ~round 7. I think it would be absurd given how classy Boyd is playing at 7, to half Metcalf return to keep "learning" the 7 game, when he is a FB and at best a potentially quality 6/fight eigth. Metcalf has the skills to play centre and has done so well before, but I would love to see him start at 6 and run at that line and run off of the likes of Leka every single time he runs. With Metcalfs pace, if he supports these offloading forwards he could easily burn players to the try line. CHT remains the high quality #14.

For me 1. CNK 6. Metcalf 7. Boyd 8. Egan/Healey makes for one dynamic spine.

So glad to see Leiataua playing without injury, he is potentially an all time great Centre if he remains that way. Has the head of a 150 game player plus the power, pace, footwork, ball skills. Reminds me of Latrell Mitchell once he matured, thats a big wrap I know.

Leka could be anything, its not a one off, he plays the same game in game out. With him in the squad, the Warriors are a more polished version of their old style of offense.

Vaimauga is such a tough guy to tackle, hes a little more traditional than Leka but still has good footwork for a forward and is a solid solid defender.

Jackson Ford has come of age, he has been leading by example, last match 238 metres and 44 tackles, that is a massive engine and that is more his game imo, the tough non glamorous stuff that wins or loses matches.

Fill those 3 forwards with big names like Mitchell, Fisher-Harris, Clark, Niukore etc and its a powerhouse forward pack with extremely handy Bench players. No wonder the Warriors so far are winning the go forward and possession.

But whats most impressive for me is what ive been wanting to see for ages, players running off of each other, forwards linking with other forwards, short passes not hospital passes (guys like Boyd no how to create a hole).

Am thrilled to have Sam Healey in the same squad as Egan.

Its hard to know where we are really at given all 3 opponents are not at their best yet, but the Tigers game should be a good reflection of where we are at.

May the foot on the gas pedal continue, we need to keep playing hungry for points and defending our try for a full 80 mins the whole dang season.

JPNZ

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#3473145 24-Mar-2026 14:13

Agree with all of that, granted I'm not a warriors fan by any measure BUT I love the fact they are winning and playing well. More good league stories in the news and lessen the focus on boring AF super rugby.

When the wahs win its good for the whole country and it bring forward the conversation about a much needed 2nd team in Christchurch.

Dam the panthers have been impressive though as well, after the Tigers the Warriors have Sharks and Storm away. 2 wins there and they are all over the top 4 come end of season.

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TeaLeaf

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#3473177 24-Mar-2026 15:37

JPNZ:

When the wahs win its good for the whole country and it bring forward the conversation about a much needed 2nd team in Christchurch.

Dam the panthers have been impressive though as well, after the Tigers the Warriors have Sharks and Storm away. 2 wins there and they are all over the top 4 come end of season.

To true bro, CCH is well overdue for a team. Its not like NZ is lacking in talent, but its impossible to keep them all when clubs will invest in a kiwi as young as 16yo. NZ players want by and large want to play in NZ, the same reasons many aussies do not want to play for Warriors. I understand the politics behind a PNG team, but NZ should have been ahead of Redfern imo, I was a club member there for many years and imo they are solid, but Qld already had enough base. The kiwi fan influence is so obvious in Qld that for the most part when the Warriors play at Suncorp you hear the Warriors chant loud and clear. Not so much in NSW. The NZ fan base in South Bris - South GC is huge. And CCH fans are like Melb, they love their sport. So I don't see a 2nd NZ team being problematic, depending on ownership.

Yes Panthers have looked very tidy and very close to our For and Against in 2nd place. Id be happy beating Tigers and beating at least one of the Sharks/Storm games. That would be a massive 6 round start 5/6 and possibly retain the top 2 position.

For me the team just looks on the money in offense. Once you put points on the board it becomes its own Defense, or at least possession dominance does. Warriors are running a better offensive line as well, A small angle is enough if the ball is spread wide to start creating confusion in the defense once the Half gets the ball to the Centres who do similar etc, with guys like Leiataua able to step back inside at will with his fend and hip strength. This is where I can see Metcalf being havoc to the defensive team. Boyd is early on in the top 4 Dally M, I just cant see the Coach messing with that when Metcalf doesnt have the same #7 skills set.

I follow most games, as much as Im a Warriors fan, Im a RL fan first and foremost.

JPNZ

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#3473191 24-Mar-2026 16:25

TeaLeaf:

I follow most games, as much as Im a Warriors fan, Im a RL fan first and foremost.

Same!

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TeaLeaf

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#3473287 24-Mar-2026 18:46

JPNZ:

TeaLeaf:

I follow most games, as much as Im a Warriors fan, Im a RL fan first and foremost.

Same!

Sometimes there is so much sport on it gets hard to watch everything haha. I was following the NZ Breakers and whilst they missed the 6 this year with untimely injuries, they won the inaugural Ignite Cup, beating Adelaide with the MVP who uisually scores half their points. :-)

Then there was the cricket which I didnt want to talk about haha.

So its kinda up and down, the Warriors finally getting the team positions right me enjoying their professional looking offense, which should be simple in theory but never is.

TeaLeaf

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#3480583 13-Apr-2026 18:00

That was a Super Saturday of epic proportions with 50+ points per game or there abouts.

After the two losses, it was good to see the Warriors not take the foot off the gas in defense or offense, bombed 50 points with two tries and could easily have racked up 60 with a better first half, but still a very good display on both facets of play in the second half. The team now averaging over 32pts per game, as are the Panthers.

This time I thought it might be a team wide small defensive lapse issue, but boy they hammered the defense home second half, it was very physical and Warriors were brutal. CHT folded two big forwards and RTS with that try saving tackle like a missile into the torso of their wing, gets up and starts waggling the "not on my watch" finger, you know when RTS shows some emotion he is dialed in. Those were the highlights for me along with Vaimauga's physicality and Jackson Ford playing yet another blinder with 36 tackles/175 metres. Hes on track in the Dally M second row race Id have thought.

Ali Leiataua, certainly has the potential as a great centre. Pompey is a good defender. Ali is the complete package. Which also highlights the difference this year, the amount of first graders in the Reserve Grade team, the Warriors have never ever had this many top tier players and backup for injuries. They have had great starting 13 and 17 man squads before of course, but this is next level Roster. And it only gets better next year, hard to believe the Storm's own Will Warbrick will be joining the Warriors, a class act Winger, to replace RTS. We will also be losing Niukore. But it will still be a highly skilled 17 man squad.

The Tigers are looking good this year, smashed Newc. But they are a team that cant afford injuries to a couple of key players and the NRL is a long physical competition.

Panthers look to be setting the pace, but even they are not perfect with the Bulldogs giving them a bit of a touch up on the scoreboard with the Panther first loss this season.

Raiders pulling out an epic win by 2 points over Souths and Roosters belting the Sharks who beat the Wariors last week.

Great round of NRL

TeaLeaf

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#3483904 25-Apr-2026 15:43

How good are the Cowboys going? big score in that game 46-34 over the sharks who are trying to get back to how they beat us.

Wests looking real good, a solid 19 point win over the Raiders, I didnt expect that scoreline either.

Dolphins have lost Nikorima, so will be short on experience in the halves. Warriors lose CNK, Tuaupiki in for him so maybe not a huge loss, with Tuaupiki being good enough on defense, but adds some X factor when he joins in the back line. One day I think he will make a dynamite 5/8th, but think CHT has the 6 on lockdown for now. I am expecting a win, which has been dangerous forever for the Warriors. But, if they going to be in the mix for top 4 position or even top 2, they have to beat teams around the 12th position, especially with the loss of their playmaker. But Dolphins still have some dangerous players, if we do not control posession and territory, any team can win on the day. Those are must do's which the Warriors were incredible last week, late in 2nd half one point having 97% completions. Same effort needed. It feels like Jackson Ford is gone YOLO on his season, being in the Dally M contenders. Crazy. I hope Leka gets better line break opportunities. To be fair if Boyd had thrown a soft pass witht he one drop ball, he had nobody in front of him 5m out. Keep the foot down on offense, I like seeing intelligent grubbers in for another set of 6 etc, Forwards are just too much for most teams, we definitely winning that battle so far in the season.

But first the Dragons game vs the Chooks. Dragons 17th, they just do not have enough experience if you peruse their team on paper. Damien Cook is an outlier. But they do have young players with a lot of potential. I hope they bounce back and put up a good fight. This one could be closer than it looks on paper.

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TeaLeaf

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#3483915 25-Apr-2026 19:32

Setu Tu Ive had my eye on for quite a while, he would slot in with the likes of Lieataua and Halisima for X factor, Id play him on the wing. He is dripping X factor. But boy the roosters have toasted the dragons. ouch.

TeaLeaf

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#3487757 5-May-2026 14:46

TLDR: was another exciting round with many surprises, with next Sunday chock full of good games especially Raiders v Panthers. Warriors #2 on table with 8/2 & For 278 Against 178, have a bye this coming round/weekend, they next play Broncos in Rd11, considered the premier match of Magic Round in Brisbane.

This could be the tightest round in a long time, very hard to predict.

Dolphins beat the Storm 5 to 2 tries, Roosters easily beat the Broncos in a high scoring game, Knights edging out Rabbits 42 to 38, possibly the big surprise was the Sharks 52 to 10 over the Tigers, and then Manly very nearly beat Penrith who hung on with a 2 point win.

Warriors ran away with their game with fitness in the second half. I was worried with Pompey playing but her added some size to the back line, but nothing replaces Ali Leiataua who is attracting attention all over the league as I suspected he would. The good news Ali will be back after the Warriors BYE. But that is one of the big differences this year, extreme depth in the Warriors camp. With 4 starters out its barely noticeable.

Warriors have been in the Top 4 29/32 rounds now, which would make you wonder how they didnt go on further last year. But with so many injuries for most of the season, the remaining couple end of season ended much hope, seeing the Warriors slip out of the top 4 and any real chance of a premiership. I do not think that is going to be a problem this year.

The one vital spot is the #9. Wade Egan is one of the best at his position in the game, but Sam Healey is the Warriors future. When Sam came on some seemed to wonder if he could play 60 minutes of footy. But that he did and he was the difference in the second half with his speed out of the ruck and creativity, much like Wade. He could play #6 imo, but the Warriors have 4 first grade half backs playing in NSW cup/RG. Im not sure how it will play out. I think Wade may look for a pay day elsewhere and Sam Healey will become a critical component of the Warriors immensely talented Spine.

Ive been wanting pace on the left wing for so long, with DWZ being one of the best finishers in the game on the right wing. Another one of our Titans pick ups in Khan-Pereira has finally filled that spot, dang he is quick, he left players standing in some of his runs.

It has added the back line speed we have needed for a very long time. With Boyd in control at 7, the execution of the ball swinging wide is truly a thing of beauty in the Warriors back line now, with so many talented players knowing when to pass and when to dummy and run.

The Warriors have 2 players in the Dally M top 10, I think Boyd has played much better than the points hes been allocated, but Jackson Ford is leading the table, ahead of Nathan Cleary 4 points behind. And Jackson deserves it. Some switch flicked in him over the off season, he is the rangey second rower he showed potential of but was never quite delivering to that potential.

Warriors now in outright 2nd, if Manly had beaten Penrith in that 2pt win, Warriors would be locked up on equal points, with Panthers well out in front with for and against, but the Warriors look pretty good this year in that regard too being 40 points clear of 3rd place Rabbits (4th on table)

Warriors next game if the premier game of Magic Round when they play the Broncos. It looks like the Warriors will have all players back from Casualty Ward by then, including Rocco Berry, who i think will replace RTS next year at left Centre with Leiataua at right centre.

The Warriors won Reserve grade/NSW cup Premiership last year. Currently 4/5 in a very congested table, I did expect with so many good players they would be even better this year, but too early to tell I guess.

Im looking forward to Magic Round in the weekend after this coming round 10, but don't miss this Sundays games with a lot of the top teams playing each other. For me the Raiders vs Penrith is the game of the round Im looking forward to.

Anway thats my 2c on the comp and the Warriors prospects so far.

maoriboy

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#3493225 18-May-2026 09:36

How about that Magic Round!!! The Warriors "home" game certainly lived up to the hype, with the crowd overwhelmingly in their favour. They also dominated the Bronco's and, aside from the unfortunate injury to Tanah Boyd, had a game to remember. TMM stepped in after a long absence and controlled the game well, which will place some pressure on the coaching team as to whether they slot Metcalfe straight back in to the team or not.

TeaLeaf

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#3493884 19-May-2026 22:13

maoriboy:

aside from the unfortunate injury to Tanah Boyd, had a game to remember. TMM stepped in after a long absence and controlled the game well, which will place some pressure on the coaching team as to whether they slot Metcalfe straight back in to the team or not.

Gutting for Boyd, was one of the form halves and was a key behind our offensive sets, that damn sand base has choked up a number of injuries , I remember the first year when it was like playing on the beach. It feels like whenever Warriors get a great team together they lose the key offensive player. TMM was amazing, highly accurate and knew the plays without having played a 1st grade for ages. But im pretty sure we train NSW cup to the same scripts.

But this is why we have created a team chock full of depth with a number of halves ready.

I think TMM cemented #7, CHT has been sharing the offensive drive with Boyd brilliantly, so for me he stays at #6. The main thing we are missing in the halves is Boyds pin point offensive kicking (bombs and grubbers).

On the plus side RTS is named, but not sure if he will play. But it worries me as Pompey has had two game changiing mistakes this year which we went on to lose, not blaming him soley, but I feel much better with RTS and Lieataua in centres, RTS with his experience and Ali with his extreme X factor, which the commentators are already picking up on. Rocco Berry cant be far away, but I cant see him replacing either of the two 1st string centres.

Barnett and Capewell out to Origin, so the young forwards have to stand up against the Dragons. if we win that, the next week is a playoff for outright #1 spot vs the Panthers.

5 more wins from 15 rounds and we are likely in the 8, but if we go at another 8/15, thats likely top 4, no doubt they have their eyes on top 2 spot.

For me its Erin Clark setting the tone from the start and obviously Jackson Ford has been brilliant for 80 minutes this year clocking up metres and tackles to be #2 just behind Cleary for the Dally M so far.

Rabbits and Roosters were the surprise losses in Magic Round. Roosters vs Cowboys was the only close match of the round. I have Roosters, Rabbits and Sea Eagles fighting behind the Warriors for the top 4.

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