For the first time, New Zealand will play host to an NRL double header, which will feature both of last year’s grand finalists, the improving Wests Tigers and the undefeated locals, the New Zealand Warriors.
The first match of the double-header sees the Melbourne Storm face off with the Wests Tigers for the second time in four weeks, while the second sees the Warriors attempt to go 5-0 for the first time in club history when they tackle the struggling North Queensland Cowboys.
The Storm’s premiership defence has got off to a shaky start, going win-loss-win-loss in their opening four matches, with the losses coming to the Tigers, their opponents on Saturday afternoon, and the Sharks last week.
A whopping 33 penalties were blown in the clash of the 2016 grand finalists, in which Storm, Queensland and Australian captain Cameron Smith, quite possibly the most hated man in New South Wales, was sin-binned in the second half for backchatting.
This came after 2016 Clive Churchill Medallist Luke Lewis was sin-binned after he was ruled to have tripped Billy Slater in the first half.
In their other loss of the season, they were held to only eight points in what was Slater’s 300th game, as the Tigers implemented a defensive-structured game plan which they had used to great effect against the Roosters in Round 1.
(Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)
Last week, Ivan Cleary’s men produced their best attacking performance so far this season to defeat the Parramatta Eels 30-20, and it’s fair to say that they could so easily have been undefeated if not for a controversial penalty in their 9-7 loss to the Brisbane Broncos at Campbelltown the previous week.
This week marks exactly a year since Cleary took the reins as Tigers coach, and the hard work he has put in since then is starting to pay off after his predecessor, Jason Taylor, was sacked three rounds into last season.
A second win over the Storm in a month could provide another stepping stone as they bid to defy the odds all over again, having also upset premiership heavyweights the Sydney Roosters in the opening round.
The second game will see the New Zealand Warriors attempt to win their first five matches of a season for the first time in their history when they host the struggling Cowboys.
Tipped by many to take out the wooden spoon at the start of the year, the Warriors have shown commitment in both attack and defence, scoring wins over the Rabbitohs, Titans, Raiders and Roosters, with only the win over the Titans coming on their home soil.
Making their win over the Chooks all the more impressive was the fact that they were missing Shaun Johnson due to a groin injury – it was also their first win without him in the side since late 2014.
In his place, Mason Lino played the match of his life, lined up opposite former Queensland Origin halfback Cooper Cronk, whose impact at the Roosters has become instant, as evidenced in their wins over the Bulldogs and Newcastle Knights prior to the shocker against the Warriors.
For their efforts, the Warriors sit second on the ladder only behind the St George Illawarra Dragons on percentage.
However, Johnson is expected to return for the clash against the Cowboys, who after beating the Sharks in Round 1 have dropped their past three matches, the latest of them a 33-14 loss to the Penrith Panthers at home.
(Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
This would see a marquee match-up between Johnson and Johnathan Thurston, who will retire at the end of the season but not before another possible match-up with his New Zealand counterpart in Townsville in Round 15.
Cowboys coach Paul Green questioned his side’s attitude after their loss to the Melbourne Storm in Round 3, and it appears as though his words fell on deaf ears as the 2015 premiers crashed to their third straight loss.
But while they have won their last four matches against the Warriors, they will start underdogs on Saturday night against a side which appears to finally be playing to their potential after six years without finals action.
With this being their first appearance in New Zealand since 2015, the Cowboys will want to use this road trip out of Townsville to break out of their current form slump, however, against the Warriors, it will not come easy.
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