KEY POINTS:
Coach Ivan Cleary has kept faith with his players and made just one expected change to the New Zealand Warriors for their National Rugby League (NRL) match away to Cronulla on Saturday night.
Skipper Steve Price returns from State of Origin duty, as the Warriors attempt to avoid a club record-equalling seventh consecutive defeat.
Price, 33, who will make his 22nd Origin appearance for Queensland tomorrow night, will stay on in Sydney and join his clubmates when they arrive there on Friday.
"Naturally we're hoping Steve comes through Origin untroubled and ready to back up against the Sharks," Cleary said today.
Price missed the Warriors' 2-4 home loss to Melbourne on Sunday because he was in camp with the Queensland squad.
He is set to be reunited in the front row with vice-captain Ruben Wiki, who led the side against the Storm, topping the team's tackle count with 37 and gaining 112m from 15 runs.
The match against the Sharks will be hooker George Gatis' 50th in the NRL. The milestone has been a long time coming, almost six years after Gatis' first-class debut for North Queensland.
With Price returning, Cleary has named a five-man bench of Nathan Fien, Wairangi Koopu, Epalahame Lauaki, Sam Rapira and Evarn Tuimavave, with one to be omitted.
The Warriors go into the second half of their campaign with a record identical to their effort at the same stage last season -- four wins and eight losses.
Last year, they came home with eight wins from their last 12 matches, and would have made the playoffs but for four points deducted for previous salary cap breaches.
New Zealand Warriors: Wade McKinnon, Patrick Ah Van, Tony Martin, Lance Hohaia, Manu Vatuvei, Michael Witt, Grant Rovelli, Ruben Wiki, George Gatis, Steve Price (captain), Simon Mannering, Logan Swann, Micheal Luck.
Interchange (one to be omitted): Nathan Fien, Wairangi Koopu, Epalahame Lauaki, Sam Rapira, Evarn Tuimavave.
- NZPA
