Last team vs Canberra. Come, sweet death!

[NZ Warrior]

VODAFONE WARRIORS v CANBERRA RAIDERS
Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland
4.00pm, Sunday, September 02
VODAFONE WARRIORS
1 CARLOS TUIMAVAVE
2 BILL TUPOU
3 BEN HENRY
4 KONRAD HURRELL
5 MANU VATUVEI
6 FELETI MATEO
7 PITA GODINET
8 JACOB LILLYMAN
9 ALEHANA MARA
10 BEN MATULINO
11 ELIJAH TAYLOR
12 SIMON MANNERING (c)
13 MICHEAL LUCK
Interchange:
14 RUSSELL PACKER
15 SIONE LOUSI
16 UKUMA TA’AI
17 LEWIS BROWN
18 JAMES MALONEY
20 SAM LOUSI
23 SEBASTINE IKAHIHIFO
HEAD COACH: TONY IRO

Stolen from www.warriors.co.nz

 

[Rebel]

Johnson has been dropped. Maloney to an extended bench. Nice to see Iro have balls and force at least, some accountability.

 

[Rich102]

Harsh when Taupo is still there.

 

[Diesel]

Ballsy selections in the halves, I like it. It's probably 5 weeks too late but nice going there

 

[Micistm]

Agreed, good to see some players being told their selection isn't automatic based on potential.
Would've like to see Tupou dropped, Fish get a chance

 

[jaseg]

Fish in for Tupou and Brown/Ta'ai/Maloney dropping off the bench and it'd be perfect - or maybe Havili on the bench, Sione Lousi to starting prop and Lillyman dropped also. As it is I'm happy enough. Godinet deserves another shot in the halves, even if it is far too late - and Mateo has been playing as an extra half for the past 2-3 months anyway.

 

[NZ Warrior]

It might pay to merge my thread with the other one.

 

[ozbash]

It might pay to merge my thread with the other one.

nah mate, you were first..

not sure if I like the toings and froings of this team.

Mateo was a good 6 for parra, but that was a while ago.

we still look as weak as hell from 6 to 1 ...

 

[jamaman]

This selection is just to fill the numbers!..half these guys will be playing Vulcans in 2013 when a real coach cometh!

 

[NZ Warrior]

I don't know why they're making such selection dramas now.

I know some of the players don't deserve it. But the coaching staff should have just let the players leaving us play at Mt Smart one last time.

It's futile thinking, to expect such changes to work miracles in the last game of the season.

 

[Skinner]

I don't know why they're making such selection dramas now.

I know some of the players don't deserve it. But the coaching staff should have just let the players leaving us play at Mt Smart one last time.

It's futile thinking, to expect such changes to work miracles in the last game of the season.

I agree Wazz. Making some fairly radical change to the halves in the final game of an absolute shit year makes little sense to me. It sort of smacks of Tones Malone saying "look at me, I'll make the changes next season"..

Who knows.

 

[Penrose Warrior]

Yeah, it does smack of Iro trying to play the big man. Although we don't know what's going on behind the scenes.

The one I don't get is Maloney. Keep him at five-eighth, play Mateo in the back-row and bring Taylor off the bench. Maloney seems like the kind of guy to me who would be keen to go out with a big one.

Maybe there will be some ducks and drakes before kick-off, Ivan style.

 

[NZ Warrior]

I agree Wazz. Making some fairly radical change to the halves in the final game of an absolute shit year makes little sense to me. It sort of smacks of Tones Malone saying "look at me, I'll make the changes next season"..

Who knows.

It all makes for a murky off-season. Just let the boys play, there's f**k all anyone can do about it all now.

And it's quite ridiculous that Carlos isn't playing for the Juniors. Shouldn't the club now be focusing on getting the Juniors another NYC Premiership???

 

[Mike0070]

Yeah I like it two , although its not going to make a rats arse of difference atleast he has made changes and putting players on notice , bit late though..

Haven't we all been asking for this for the last month ?? I know I have......

 

[Penrose Warrior]

It all makes for a murky off-season. Just let the boys play, there's f**k all anyone can do about it all now.

And it's quite ridiculous that Carlos isn't playing for the Juniors. Shouldn't the club now be focusing on getting the Juniors another NYC Premiership???

If it's better for his development to play NRL, then that's what he should do. He's going to get better playing first grade than 20s. We've won back to back U20s comps, where's that got us this year with a few of them playing for the top side? He'll be there come play-off time anyway.

 

[Iafeta]

It all makes for a murky off-season. Just let the boys play, there's f**k all anyone can do about it all now.

And it's quite ridiculous that Carlos isn't playing for the Juniors. Shouldn't the club now be focusing on getting the Juniors another NYC Premiership???

I don't think the focus this week should be on the NYC team. For pride's sake, for the sake of the fans, they need to get back in the winners circle in first grade.

As for the the first part, fully agree. I find the changes astonishing. Brave, but geez imagine if Johnson decides he'll get his agent to start talking to the union mongs. He's the best half prospect we've had since at least Stacey Jones. I think the likes of Hurrell, Locke and Johnson represent our best chance at developing gamebreakers, whereas say Bill Tupou at the moment... he doesn't, and he seriously is in dire need of a trip to reserve grade. To me if Iro wanted to see things for next year, Fisiiahi onto the wing would have been highly logical.

 

[ozbash]

yea, I dont know. Our NRL team is a write off, our juniors are in with a good show of making it 3.

Although the NYC has scraped in without him, Carlos is the glue in that team.

 

[Spanner in the works]

As an outside viewer I find it truly bizarre. It makes no sense to potentially create a rift in the club by dropping Maloney and Johnson when it will achieve exactly nothing. Maloney has served you guys so well and he deserves one last hurrah especially at home. Johnson needs as much game time in first grade as possible, especially when things are tough. I'm all for punting players to reserve grade when it achieves something i.e. turns a players form around and as a result a teams fortunes around. This will achieve none of that.

 

[Akkerz]

Regardless of this forgettable year both Brown & Maloney have done well for us in the past & deserve to be on the park Sunday, not shunted quietly out the back door .

 

[Skinner]

Regardless of this forgettable year both Brown & Maloney have done well for us in the past & deserve to be on the park Sunday, not shunted quietly out the back door .

Yes mate, you are dead right. I think there are lots of short memories here. Maloney, at least, played a huge part in the finals last year. Sharky was big in most games....I think both have earned their keep, and it's a sad way to go out now. I would not give me the warm and fuzzies if I was considering a move to the Warriors.