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Senior forward Adam Blair says the Warriors are hoping to do "something special" this season after they extended their winning run to five-straight games with yesterday's 22-12 NRL victory over the Cowboys.
Blair described their performance in the three-tries-to-two win in front of a sold-out Mt Smart Stadium as "gutsy" and credited the side's unbeaten start to the season and their desperation in defence on their collective commitment and willingness to work hard for each other.
"We turned up for each other again," Blair said.
"It's something that we worked on really hard in the off-season, about making sure that we do look after each other, and whatever happens on the field, we make sure we take care of it all."
Warriors captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck leads the side out in front of a sold-out Mt Smart Stadium. Photo New Zealand Herald Brett Phibbs.
The former Storm, Wests Tigers, and Broncos enforcer admits there's a special feeling among the Warriors and says the players are determined to improve further as the season progresses.
Even he didn't foresee the side winning their first five games but says he was always sure the Warriors had the talent on hand to match it with the best sides in the NRL.
"This is special," he said. "There's a group of boys here that really want to do something special this year and that started back in pre-season.
"The attitude and the will to compete and to be accountable for your own actions and to keep each other honest [is there], and we're doing that really well now.
"I thought we had a good enough group here to be able to compete with the best.
"Five in a row, I don't know if anyone would have thought that, so we're just really lucky that we're doing everything right at the moment."
The 32-year-old isn't getting carried away however, and stressed the point that the Warriors need to remain focused if they are to continue tracking upwards over the remaining 21 rounds.
"It's a long season and we're only five rounds in and I know for a fact that things can turn around pretty quickly.
"So it's just important that we stay grounded and we focus on our routines and that we get that right week in, week out, individually and as a group."
Simon Mannering got through close to an hour of action against the Cowboys in his return from a shoulder injury. Photo / Photosport.
Meanwhile, former captain Simon Mannering was happy to come through his first appearance of the season unscathed after making his return from a shoulder injury.
The 31-year-old made his 281st outing off the bench and got through almost an hour, making nine runs and 20 tackles in a typically industrious display.
"Usually I get sore a couple of days later and I'm sure I will be after that, but it was a great occasion to be a part of," Mannering said.
"The injury was good. I didn't even really notice it to be honest."
Mannering is excited by the side's growth in confidence and belief but echoed Blair's comments about the Warriors needing to keep a level head throughout the remainder of the season.
"We don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves," he said. "It's starting to shift, for sure, but it doesn't happen overnight or even in five weeks.
"We are heading in the right direction and you can see that in our performances as individuals right across the park.
But after experiencing plenty of dark times during 13 seasons at the club, Mannering was thrilled to see 25,600 fans turn out and hopes there's a similar attendance on hand for next Saturday's home game against Brisbane.
"It was cool. Some of the boys would never have experienced anything like that before so I'm glad everyone enjoyed it.
"Hopefully the fans all come back next week and we can put in another good performance against the Broncos."
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