‘Auckland is a rugby league town’: How the Warriors have taken over - and how Super Rugby let it happen
If there was ever a testament required to the success of the New Zealand Warriors, we might have seen it this last weekend passed.…
The New Zealand Warriors look like they have recovered from the 32-0 thumping they received courtesy of the Roosters last week, with a 24-14 win over the Parramatta Eels last night at ANZ Stadium.
Despite the Warriors missing a couple of key staff including Shaun Johnson, the Warriors were are to hold firm to take out the victory and overcome a second half comeback from the Eels.
Parramatta got off to an early start with a penalty goal from the boot of Mitchell Moses in the eighth minute, but the Warriors hit back to get out to a 12-2 lead at the break. With the game looking in the bag, Warriors slipped back into their 2017 habits with allowing the Eels to tie things up to 12-12 in the first 20 of the second half.
At that stage the game could have gone either way, with the Eels’ performance against the top-of-the-table Warriors defying Parramatta’s lowly ladder position. However, the Warriors took charge of the game with ten minutes to go and scored two tries to place the match firmly in their own hands.
The loss as seen the Eels slump to their ninth loss of the season, with only two victories. Eels fans can almost start putting a line through the season before we’ve even hit the halfway mark.
With the win the Warriors can regroup back to the form that saw them be considered real contenders for the 2018 season. They’ve gone equal top of the table with the Dragons and the Panthers, showing real grit and determination in what is shaping up as one of their best ever seasons. With the Origin period around the corner, the Warriors have given themselves the perfect chance to solidify their position at the pointy end of the table come finals time.
Match results
Warriors 24
Tries: David Fusitu”a, Petu Hiku, Jass Teva and Issac Luke
Goals: Mason Lino – 5
Eels 14
Tries: Clint Gutterson and Manu Ma”uti
Goals: Mitchell Moses- 3
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