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Broncos coach Wayne Bennett thought his team self-destructed at Mt Smart yesterday but, for a blistering 15-minute spell before halftime, it looked more like they were simply blown apart by the Warriors.
Despite the absence of Darren Lockyer, the reigning premiers started smartly, edging to a 10-2 lead thanks to tries from Shane Perry and Sam Thaiday.
Everything was going to plan for the Broncos until the 25th minute, when skipper Steve Price crossed from close range to spark a Warriors onslaught that ended with Michael Crockett narrowly missing a first-half hat-trick and the bumper crowd of 16,738 rising as one for a rare, if not unprecedented, halftime standing ovation.
"Our supporters have been through a bit over the last few years so we've pretty much got to earn that sort of respect and I think we are starting to do that," said Price of the reception that greeted his team's mesmeric turnaround.
Bennett wasn't as thrilled.
"I see a lot of guys out there trying hard but we are self-destructing," the Broncos coach said.
"We were lucky to come in 24-10 down. To play the way we were playing, we were lucky not to be 40 points down."
It was heady stuff from the Warriors, who delivered a potent mix of calm, structured and frenetic razzle-dazzle running league.
Price's try was followed inside three minutes by a slick finish by Crockett, who cut in from his wing after Wade McKinnon had taken advantage of a scrum win against the head with a bumping run that left Ben Hannant and Karmichael Hunt prone and created the space for centre Tony Martin.
Michael Witt grounded Grant Rovelli's grubber after Brad Thorn had been penalised for a second time for not playing the ball correctly and the speedy Crockett then hugged the touchline for his second after Witt had chipped and regathered to slice the Broncos wide open up the middle.
Only the bounce of the ball prevented Crockett grabbing a third before the break as he chased another searching grubber.
"We were probably disappointed that halftime came when it did," Price said.
"We were starting to click pretty well."
Coach Ivan Cleary was among the impressed spectators as his side posted first back-to-back wins to start a season.
"The good thing was it was pretty controlled," Cleary said.
"There was a definite skill element to it. I certainly enjoyed it. It probably came off the back of getting our disciplines right after we surrendered that early lead," he said.
Life would have been more comfortable for Cleary had his side killed off the Broncos in the second half but they were unable to finish a number of golden opportunities.
Brent Tait's 46th-minute try closed the gap to 10, adding to the tension.
"I couldn't wait until there was two minutes to go because I knew they couldn't win then," Cleary said.
"We came up with plenty of opportunities through the middle of the second half but we couldn't finish. It just kept happening. You just got the feeling it was going to be one of those days where we had to grind it out and, in the end, that's what we did."
Crockett's try tally now stands at four in two matches for his new club.
"You just have to be ready for anything," he said of adjusting to life playing for the unpredictable Warriors.
"The boys pop balls out here and there and, if you are not ready for it, you will probably miss a vital opportunity. So you've got to be on your toes.
Bennett summed up the difficulty of playing the Warriors when they are in this kind of mood.
"It's hard to come in at 24-10 down when you were 10-2 up and playing some good footy. In 15 minutes your whole game is blown away."
Lance Hohaia and McKinnon were put on report for high tackles, as was Broncos skipper Petero Civoniceva.
Sam Thaiday and Tonie Carroll were also reported for a dangerous throw on Micheal Luck.
