Warriors’ coach Andrew Webster laments lack of composure, discipline in NRL opening defeat to Cronulla Sharks

Warriors coach Andrew Webster looks on during the post match press conference following the NRL preliminary final between the Brisbane Broncos and the New Zealand Warriors at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Saturday, September 23, 2023. (AAP Image/Dave Hunt/ www.photosport.nz

Warriors’ coach Andrew Webster feels a lack of discipline and composure – along with an inability to follow the game plan – were the major factors in Friday’s 16-12 defeat to the Sharks.

After a huge build-up, the season opener was an immensely frustrating watch, as the home side failed to capitalise on a good start, then conceded 16 unanswered points as Cronulla got momentum either side of halftime.

In 2023 the Warriors were typified by grit and hunger and regularly won close contests but the Sharks were the much more resilient side on Friday and deserved their victory.

A bad result was compounded by injuries to hooker Wayde Egan (elbow) and Kurt Capewell (rib cartilage), with both in doubt for Saturday’s trip to Melbourne (9:35pm). It wasn’t a terrible performance – and the Warriors could have stolen it late – but there were concerning signs, not least the nature of Cronulla’s three tries.

NZ Warriors captain Tohu Harris talks with match referee Peter Gough - during round 1 defeat to Cronulla Sharks.

While Webster wanted to accentuate the positives, he was clearly disappointed, as they failed to build on an early 12-0 lead.

“There were so many things that we can work with, that were unbelievable and it looks really good..and then there’s things that we just can’t do,” said Webster. “We are not going to compete, not going to be the team we want to be if we are going to do dumb [things], lack of concentration, errors.”

After completely dominating the first 20 minutes, the match turned in the second quarter. The Sharks hung on grimly – with some marvellous defence – then began to get momentum – helped by penalties and errors from the home side.

“We invited them back into the game,” agreed Webster.

The Warriors’ 12-6 halftime lead didn’t seem enough, after almost 60 per cent possession and a huge yardage advantage.

“I wasn’t worried whether we were up by how many, I just didn’t like the way we were going about it. I didn’t like the pressure we were putting on ourselves,” said Webster.

The Warriors wanted to reset at halftime – “it was about discipline, put them in the corner and build some pressure” – but those plans were undone by Ronaldo’s Mulitalo try barely a minute after the break, following a Warriors’ error and Cronulla looked more likely from there.

“The period after halftime was really poor, our defence, our ruck control, just wasn’t good enough,” lamented Webster.

Still, the sellout crowd braced for a grandstand finish, as the Warriors had opportunities in the last quarter, but their attack was fragmented and messy. At one point prop Addin Fonua-Blake was forced to take a fifth tackle kick, while the spine was out of sync, especially after Egan’s departure.

Warriors celebrate their opening try of 2024 NRL season.

“We were trying to win it with a big play, instead of trying to get our flow on the way we like to do it,” said Webster.

The Sharks pushed the boundaries in the ruck, especially in the first half but captain Tohu Harris felt the Warriors were masters of their own downfall.

“We keep hurting ourselves,” said Harris. “We would do some good things, then we would lose concentration for one or two plays and they have got momentum, rolling down the field. We constantly had one or two moments – every couple of sets – that hurt ourselves.”

Harris didn’t think the Warriors had been negatively affected by the hype or the occasion – “I didn’t feel like it was a burden”.

The club wait for a verdict on Egan, who hyper-extended his elbow after being trapped under a melee of bodies.

“It could be fine and it might be nasty but we don’t know yet,” said Webster, while Capewell will also be assessed, after completing the second half with a painful injury.

“He was tough enough to come back and finish the game but he will be a sore boy,” admitted Webster.

There is also no thought about a positional switch for centre Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, who had a stint at fullback when Taine Tuaupiki was forced off for a head injury assessment in the first half.

“Everyone loves Roger at fullback,” said Webster. “It’s the most talked about thing in rugby league. [But] Taine was very good at fullback, Roger was good at centre.”

Webster assured that the team is on the right track, despite a “clunky” start to the season.

“We [were] prepared for the fact we weren’t going to be perfect [on Friday] but we wanted to simplify it, get momentum through our attack,” said Webster. “But it felt like we were losing momentum, weren’t running the right lines, didn’t know what we were doing at times. We’ll fix that, we’ve got lots to get better at, lots to work with.”

Michael Burgess has been a sports journalist since 2005, winning several national awards and covering Olympics, Fifa World Cups and America’s Cup campaigns. He has also reported on the Warriors and NRL for more than a decade.