By Christopher Reive in Sydney
Warriors 6
Panthers 32
In the Warriors’ return to finals football, they barely fired a shot.
In fact, their weapons stayed in their holsters for the majority of the contest as the New Zealand side came under a barrage from the Penrith Panthers attack in a 32-6 loss.
In their first finals appearance since 2018 – also a loss to the Panthers – the Warriors spent most of the game without the ball, but when they did have possession, there was a lack of creativity and, at times, cohesion without the presence of halfback Shaun Johnson.
The Warriors’ one try came through hooker Wayde Egan on the back of a Mitch Barnett offload, which Egan quickly spread before getting the ball back from a looping Dallin Watene-Zelezniak pass.
But that was the extent of what the Warriors fans among the 21,252-strong crowd at Penrith’s BlueBet Stadium had to cheer about in a game where their side were largely kept on the back foot.
Three first-half errors were pounced on by the Panthers, with all three of their first-half scores coming after the Warriors coughed up possession. The Panthers weren’t at their clinical best, but what they were allowed to show against the Warriors was an ominous sign for the competition in the coming weeks.
Despite the scoreline, the Warriors defended stoically for the most part; they just had to do far too much of it. That showed in their tackling numbers, making 387 and missing 39.
Tohu Harris and Egan combined for 106 of those between them, while Te Maire Martin made several important tackles as the Warriors were able to turn the Panthers away from their line several times.
But the hosts were unrelenting.
It all began about five minutes in with a Dylan Walker penalty followed by Marcelo Montoya knocking on the bomb at the end of the ensuing set. The Panthers tested the Warriors defence, and ultimately broke it after Nathan Cleary danced along its face, shifting the ball wide for Brian To’o to score in the corner.
Tries to Liam Martin – storming over as the Warriors finally relented to heavy pressure on their goal line – and Sunia Turuva, with a late Cleary penalty for good measure, gave the hosts a comfortable lead at the break.
The Warriors showed a bit more in the second half, getting on the board to close the gap to 14, but a second to Turuva and a late try to Cleary pushed the margin out to something that better resembled Penrith’s dominance.
As heavy a loss as it was, there will be positives for the Warriors to take into next weekend’s do-or-die clash against either the Newcastle Knights or Canberra Raiders; afforded a second chance courtesy of their top-four finish in the regular season.
NZ Warriors 6 (Wayde Egan try; Adam Pompey con)
Penrith Panthers 32 (Sunia Turuva 2, Brian To’o, Liam Martin, Nathan Cleary tries; Nathan Cleary 5 cons, pen)
HT: 0-20
All the key NRL fixtures for the Warriors.