The back five have been posting plenty of metres with ball in hand, mostly working their way out of their own 20m early in the tackle count. Add to that the work of the second rowers – particularly Tohu Harris – hitting the ball up, gaining ground hasn't been the problem.
Where the Warriors are struggling is in causing problems for the opposition's defence. Even before the restart, the Warrior's creativity on attack was non-existent. Through four rounds, they've scored four tries – two of those coming courtesy of forwards from close range and another a penalty try.
With ruck infringements now offering teams repeat sets opposed to penalties, more often than not a quick play-the-ball is on offer and a good running game can exploit the holes in the retreating defence – particularly late in the contest when fatigue sets in.
But where they Warriors are lacking is in the running games of their halves and hooker. In the No 9 jersey, Wayde Egan is yet to make any sort of impact on the attack. In the past two week, he's run the ball just seven times for a total of 25m. For comparison, Penrith Panthers hooker Apisai Koroisau ran for more than 100m in 11 carries – nine of which were from dummy half.
Heading into the season restart, Kodi Nikorima was given the nod alongside Blake Green in the halves as the new rules should suit his ability to run the ball.
Warriors half Blake Green in possession. Photo / Photosport
Both he and Green have been running the ball, sure, but they haven't been asking questions. In their loss to the Panthers at the weekend, only once did either half actually attack the line with ball in hand, which opened space for Gerard Beale to pierce through the defensive line. For the most part, when the halves ran it was only for a short time before palming the ball off to a forward and more often than not this was done well before the defensive line and therefore well handled.
And in the first half, neither Nikorima nor Green ran the ball once.
On the other side, Jerome Luai and Matt Burton forced the Warriors to make defensive decisions throughout the contest, with a late try through Billy Burns a prime example of a half attacking the line as Burton drew in defenders before sending Burns in.
Defensively, the Warriors have been solid – at least in the last couple of weeks. While the 26-0 score line against the Panthers wasn't flattering, they conceded a few unlucky tries which helped to blow it out. But their attack – or lack thereof – is a dire situation.
With just four tries to their name, the Warriors have scored the fewest in the competition. They've also made the fewest line breaks (4), second fewest line break assists (2), second fewest offloads (23) and, you guessed it, scored the fewest points (24).
Getting more out of the halves and hooker can only help things.
