NRL: Warrior keen to front up against former side

Warriors winger Denan Kemp

Winger Denan Kemp will keep any reunion emotions in check when the New Zealand Warriors play National Rugby League co-leaders Brisbane in Auckland tomorrow night.

Kemp will be one of three former Broncos lining up for the home side, along with fellow new recruit Joel Moon and experienced centre Brent Tate.

Kangaroo and Queensland Origin representative Tate has already faced his old club, having been part of the Warriors' 16-12 win at Mt Smart Stadium last August.

Kemp got on the scoresheet that night, crossing late in the game to make the home crowd endure a few nervous moments before the final whistle.

The Gold Coast-born 21-year-old made his first-grade debut in the middle of 2007, but really came to note with his scoring feats last year, when his 19 tries made him Brisbane's top try-scorer.

He said he would be looking to treat his first match against the Broncos as just another tough NRL encounter.

"It doesn't matter if I've played for them or not," he said.

"I just want to go out there and not let the boys down."

Kemp hasn't yet got over the line in his two appearances so far for the Warriors, but has made his mark in his new role as goalkicker.

The one-time soccer player landed five from five against Parramatta a fortnight ago, and then slotted the late-minute conversion in the thriller against premiers Manly.

He admitted there were a few nerves when he lined up the attempt from wide out to snatch a 26-24 victory at Brookvale Oval.

"I knew if I had missed, we would have had to go into extra time and I was pretty tired and so were the rest of the boys," he said.

"It was just a lucky kick, I guess. It went so well off the boot."

The Broncos, under new coach Ivan Henjak, have had narrow wins over North Queensland and Melbourne under their belts.

They feature a number of unfamiliar names, including rookie wingers Jharal Yow Yeh and Auckland-born Antonio Winterstein.

Kemp knew Yow Yeh from his time at the Broncos, but had little information on Winterstein, who played in the Under-20 competition with the Sydney Roosters last year.

Of the two other former Broncos sporting Warrior colours, it will be Moon who will be engaged in the most intriguing match-up, against the great Darren Lockyer.

Moon, 20, was used mostly at centre by Brisbane and one of the reasons he shifted across the Tasman was the lure of wearing his favoured No 6 jersey.

While the Broncos have new faces in their ranks, Warrior coach Ivan Cleary said there was a lot of similarity between the class of 2009 and their predecessors.

Much of their game plan still revolved around the main playmakers of Lockyer, halfback Peter Wallace and fullback Karmichael Hunt, and they had shown plenty of grit in the opening rounds.

"They've had two really close games, frantic-type games, sort of classic Broncos, really," Cleary said.

"They're never beaten and they compete right to the end. In that sense they look similar."

The Warriors' own winning start has added fuel to the pre-season hype about their status as serious title contenders.

Cleary said it hadn't been difficult to keep his players' feet on the ground this week - the opposition's reputation took care of that.

"We're playing the Broncos," he said.

"That's probably the easiest way."

- NZPA