League: Warriors crucify woeful Souths for biggest win

Warriors 66 Souths 0

The score between the Warriors at the vast and nearly empty Olympic Stadium yesterday was backs seven, forwards five - tries that is.

Souths had a big fat zero next to their name and the Warriors could take more pride from that than they could from the record 66 points they put on the 1908 foundation club.

Souths were woeful from the start and by the end of the first quarter were 20-0 down, all hope of a contest gone for the fans who were almost outnumbered by caterers and ground staff.

The Warriors tore into Souths and the 66-point gap was their biggest winning margin and one that will have given them plenty of confidence as the business end of the season approaches.

It was 38 minutes before Souths got near the Warriors' goal line - and then they kicked too deep. They had let in six tries and their body language spoke of defeat.

Nothing much changed in the second half. Mistakes from the home side were followed by Warriors points.

Jerome Ropati scored the first of six first-half tries that came on the back of good forward gain after just nine minutes.

That left the score 32-0 - Souths' worst first half this season and the Warriors' best.

Then tries kept coming in the second half as Souths sloppy defence gifted the Warriors chances.

Souths' previous worst loss was 62-0 to the Roosters in 1995. The Warriors' previous biggest winning margin was 68-10 over the Northern Eagles in 2002.

The Warriors looked well-coached, stuck to the game plan and were committed.

Coach Ivan Cleary said he had viewed Souths as a danger team leading up to the match.

"So to do it the way we did and go on with it showed some maturity, I think. The boys did everything asked of them," he said.

Cleary said now the team were on a roll, it was a good opportunity to make a move in the competition.

"In our situation it is such an even competition that if you get on a bit of a run you can make a real inroad into the competition, so for us to back performances up has been pleasing.

"Stringing a few more [wins] together would be great but we just have to focus on Penrith [at Ericsson Stadium] on Saturday."

Captain Steve Price said the players had not started the way Cleary and assistant coach John Ackland had told them to earlier in the season.

"But for the last five weeks we have been pretty close to what the coaches want us to do."

Next week the Warriors host a Penrith side that will likely be without playmaker Craig Gower, who is expected to be named today as New South Wales halfback and withdrawn for the State of Origin squad.

Meanwhile, fullback Brent Webb who signed a two-year deal with Leeds at the weekend, said he is disappointed the Warriors did not make him an offer to stay, but he is determined to do well for them for the rest of the season.

Warriors ceo Wayne Scurrah said: "We always held hope Brent would stay with us but we have been aware for some time that we would be unable to meet his financial expectations."

- additional reporting NZPA