Precious few standouts in the Warriors’ last home game of the season, a 31-10 drubbing at the hands of South Sydney.
1 ROGER TUIVASA-SHECK (c): Has anyone in the history of the game performed at a level so far above their teammates so often and so consistently as RTS? Laid on the first try, got through a mountain of work and cleaned up superbly at the back. Only blight on his game was defending in the front-line and missing Cam Murray, who scurried over for the first try. 7.5
NRL: Roger Tuivasa-Sheck on track for back-to-back Dally M Medals https://t.co/jvO03mwplP pic.twitter.com/TRp9QLZlD0
— Stuff.co.nz Sport (@NZStuffSport) August 28, 2019
2 DAVID FUSITU’A: Ran for 91 metres on 14 carries, but lacks the physical presence of seasons past and received no opportunities out wide. Couple of nice touches at centre when he swapped with Pompey. 5.5
3 PETA HIKU: Looked one of the Warriors’ more dangerous attackers and finished with 95 metres from nine runs, while also reeling off 20 tackles. Solid. 6.5
22 ADAM POMPEY: Nice finish to bag his first NRL try after getting a late call-up for the injured Patrick Herbert, but doesn’t look a long-term first-grader. Appalling line drop-out to give away a penalty and allow Souths to get out to an eight-point lead. 5
Has Adam Pompey played rugby league before? Or is he just someone they pulled off the street.
— A Man Has No Name (@betting_aussie) August 30, 2019
5 KEN MAUMALO: A great finish to return to the top of the NRL’s tryscoring leaderboard and a workhorse with a team-high 20 runs for 168. Never shirks his work. 7
6 KODI NIKORIMA: Sizzling piece of attacking brilliance to set up Maumalo’s try – exactly the type of play he was lured to Auckland for. But did almost nothing otherwise, content to shovel the ball on when the Warriors were in good territory and kicking just twice. Hard to justify picking him ahead of CHT – pay-packet aside. 5
7 BLAKE GREEN: Besides one wonderful exception that forced a line drop-out, Green’s kicking game was abhorrent. Rarely found the grass on long kicks and his short kicking game was a long succession of busts. Playmaking pedestrian once again. Trying hard but it’s just not working for him being the main man – particularly when his halves partner is inexplicably quiet. 4
A great tradition continues as the Warriors mark their last game against John Sutton…wish Blake Green would put as much practice into his kicking game as he does tribute speeches though #NRLWarriorsSouths pic.twitter.com/AtwZYEISXV
— This Warriors Life (@thiswarriorslyf) August 30, 2019
Blake Green has deadset fallen off a cliff #NRLWarriorsSouths
— Eden Richards (@Eden_Richards) August 30, 2019
8 AGNATIUS PAASI: The milestone man had a rather forgettable 37 minutes on the paddock in his 100th NRL game. Ran for just 85 metres (though that was the highest tally by a Warriors forward!) and made 27 tackles but missed five. 5
9 ISSAC LUKE: Good energy on both sides of the ball and finished with 34 tackles. Difficult to fathom the club being so adamant ‘Bully’ won’t be there next year, given the Warriors’ only dummy-half options for 2020 are injury-prone utilities and/or ill-suited to being a starting hooker. 6
10 LEESON AH MAU: Restricted to 79 metres on nine carries, but was super-reliable defensively with 31 stops and just one miss. 6
11 ADAM BLAIR: Hard to dish out praise when he made just four runs and missed seven tackles. But his cover tackle on Campbell Graham was a beauty and hinted that the desire was there last night from the veteran. 5
12 ISAIAH PAPALI’I: Two brain-dead ruck penalties, two South Sydney tries. It’s difficult to sympathise with Kearney when such low-quality football is continually rewarded with a first-grade starting spot. On the bright side, racked up 46 tackles and missed just one. 5
Two Isaiah Papali’i penalties, two tries to Souths. Meanwhile, you can catch Leivaha Pulu in reserve grade action again this weekend #NRLWarriorsSouths pic.twitter.com/hKvc4r2Xg6
— This Warriors Life (@thiswarriorslyf) August 30, 2019
13 JAZZ TEVAGA: Topped the tackle count with 52 and carted the ball up 10 times. Hard to fault. 6
14 LACHLAN BURR: Made more runs than any Warriors forward with 11 and racked up 42 tackles. High work-rate but low impact. 6
15 SAM LISONE: Seriously, how is Lisone now commanding a spot in the 17 ahead of Bunty Afoa? Lazy high-tackle penalty was quickly followed by poor marker defence and a miss on Cody Walker, who set up a decisive try for Murray. Made three runs and 10 tackles during his 14-minute stint. 4
16 LIGI SAO: Six runs and 30 tackles during 38 minutes on the paddock. Went on an offloading-at-all-costs rampage late in the game that resulted in two turnovers – but at least he was trying something. 5
17 CHANEL HARRIS-TAVITA: Brought on at hooker – inexplicably, given Nikorima’s lack of impetus in the halves – and suffered a broken arm after four minutes. Made six tackles during that time but didn’t get to touch the ball. 4
Chanel Harris-Tavita suffered a suspected broken arm/wrist for the Warriors. Initially made 4 tackles with injury before coming off. If fracture confirmed would be at least a 4-6 week recovery to allow for adequate bone healing, possibly longer depending on severity/location
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) August 30, 2019
Categories: Previews + Reviews, WARRIORS NEWS
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