Warriors’ Soft Defence and Poor Kicking Cost Them Against Raiders
Watching the Warriors v Raiders game last night I could not believe how dumb the Warriors team can be.
Defensive Lapses Hand Raiders Early Advantage
Initially they let in two very soft tries to Hudson Young from the Raiders with the softest defence you will ever see to go 12-0 down. Then they give away a penalty for a strip to go 14-0 down. Not only that, this was after 20 minutes of play ,they challenged the referees decision and lost their only challenge. Any body knows the bunker will not over turn the on field ref’s decision. The Bunker is weak and would never do that.
Warriors’ Late Fightback Comes Too Late
They fought back in the later stages, but you can not give teams a 14 point start and win. The kicking from Chanel Harris-Tavita was really poor and the chasers were non existent. A team must kick to the corners, contest the kick, and make the opposition bring the ball out from their own try line. You build pressure even if it takes multiple sets. The Warriors do not seem to understand this. I would hate to be their coach. Poor Andrew Webster. Watch the Panthers and see how they do it. It’s not new.
Comparison with Top Kickers Highlights Warriors’ Shortcomings
Look at the good kickers, like Cleary, Walker, Reynolds, Hughes, Grant, they control the play ,get the ball when they want it, kick for the in goal to get another set, or plug the ball in the corners and apply good defence. Not the Warriors. For a team that has been in the competition for 30 years they have not improved, and again this year will finish around 13 th. This might be OK for the club ,but not for me. They will never win a competition, ever, even with a reasonable roster that they have.
Disappointing Season Expected for Warriors
I expected them to finish around 9th this year. Imagine if they got in the eight and played the Storm, Roosters, or Penrith first up. Smack back down. So 9th was good I thought. Enough to keep the players interested, but only just.
Potential Unfulfilled: Fans Left Disappointed
They are a club that has potential, always have, but continue to disappoint fans. As the game went on ,Fonua-Blake scored a great try ,and the kick from 20 metres in from touch was a sitter that grandma would have got in her slippers, but again Harris-Tavita misses. This would have taken the game to golden point, but even then I don’t think the Warriors would ice a field goal. They do not have the ability or patience to do this.
Missed Opportunities Costly for Warriors
Despite out-scoring the Raiders by four tries to three, the Warriors paid a high price for Chanel Harris-Tavita missing three conversions – his final kick resembled a wounded duck as he attempted to ice a late try by Adam Fonua-Blake. The coach said he did not blame Harris-Tavita for the loss, but three conversions is 6 points. I was never very good at maths ,but 6 points more and you win the game, I think!
Stuttering Attack and Soft Defence to Blame
The pressing issue was their stuttering attack and unconvincing kicking game, combined with the surprisingly soft defence that allowed Young to crash over for his tries on the left-hand side of the park, denied them opportunities to choke the Raiders out of the contest.
Season Review and Upcoming Challenges
This is a game the Warriors should have won, luckily I backed the Raiders.
For the season, played 18, won 7, NOT good enough.
Another dismal failure of a season, is my opinion.
Next week is the Tigers at home. Can the Tigers cause an upset? It’s not out of the question at all.
About Dolphins vs Panthers
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