At the temporarily named Shaun Johnson Stadium, farewells were the theme of the night.
Along with Johnson, the Warriors paid tribute to departing stars Jazz Tevaga and Addin Fonua-Blake, who will both be moving on at the end of the season. Each ran out of the tunnel on their own to strong applause from the 24,295-strong crowd – the latter two joining a guard of honour for Johnson, wife Kayla and their two daughters to enter through.
The air of a new era being ushered in hung over the stadium; the Warriors already being eliminated from finals contention meaning their penultimate game of the season would definitely be the last time the home fans saw the trio front for their side in the flesh.
With that, they clung to every touch of the football. Johnson showing some of the footwork that earned him the nickname Magic Johnson - making the crowd gasp as a collective as he almost broke the line with the try line in sight – Fonua-Blake and Tevaga, who was elevated into the starting side, making their presence felt in tackles and carries.
And through the opening 20 minutes, it looked as though the emotion of the night might just lift the hosts to a memorable win.
The Bulldogs have made a remarkable turnaround this season, coming into the round 25 clash sitting fifth on the ladder and boasting the title of the league’s best defensive team. But the Warriors broke them open on a number of occasions in the opening exchanges; Luke Metcalf putting both Marcelo Montoya and Kurt Capewell over for early tries to give the Warriors a double-digit lead inside of 20 minutes as the rain began to fall.
The Bulldogs weathered the storm and soon worked their way into the contest. The Warriors defended well through much of the first half, but they were asked to do it for long stretches and eventually the visitors got on the board.
One try led to another, and then another. With three tries in eight minutes, the Bulldogs took the lead.
While a Wayde Egan dart from dummy half for a try gave the Warriors the halftime lead, the Bulldogs took over in the second half.
With more possession and a better completion rate after the break, the visitors tightened the screw on the Warriors, who had opportunities but struggled to make them stick. For the second week in a row, the Warriors did not score a point in the second half. To make life tougher, they lost Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to a head knock early in the period - having already lost fellow centre Adam Pompey to a knee injury - and were forced to reshuffle. Tuivasa-Sheck appeared to have been caught high by a shoulder from Bulldogs captain Stephen Crichton, who was placed on report but allowed to stay on the field.
In the end, tries to Harry Hayes, Josh Addo-Carr and Jacob Kiraz saw the visitors overturn a two-point deficit into a 16-point lead, the Bulldogs trending in the right direction as they try to earn a place in the top four come the end of the regular season.
NZ Warriors 18 (Marcelo Montoya, Kurt Capewell, Wayde Egan tries; Shaun Johnson 3 cons)
Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs 34 (Bronson Xerri, Stephen Crichton, Kurtis Morrin, Harry Hayes, Josh Addo-Carr, Jacob Kiraz tries; Matt Burton 5 cons)
HT: 18-16
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
