Oh crap, I'm starting to get excited about Warriors 2021

[Benek]

Best roster we've had in years. 6, 7, 9 will be the weak spots, which aren't good positions to be weak in! But, if we can skate through the season with limited injuries in those positions we may be OK.

I think we've got a squad well suited to the faster, looser style of play the new rule changes are creating.

Anyone else getting that combination of excitement for a year where the Warriors may actually shine, combined with the dread of the usual disappointment? Will this year be any different?

If they can build on the back of what happened in the second half of last year, we should be in for some entertainment.

Now if we could just manage to get some home games in NZ to actually watch it live.

 

[Meth]

No.

not yet

 

[JJ]

Me neither

excited about AFB and Phil Gould, Aitken to a lesser extent. The rest are meh until they prove otherwise ... happy to be surprised of course

 

[LeagueNut]

I'm getting way too excited about a return to Mt Smart. Too early to say whether it will happen in Round 5 or not, but I reckon it'll happen at some stage this year.

Can you imagine what that's going to be like? A jam-packed full house, the noise, the atmosphere, the welcoming cheer, the boost it'll give the team. It almost feels like the unlosable match unless the emotion overwhelms them, but I can't see that happening.

 

[Rich102]

We are desperately short of an organising half. Time will tell how we cope with this.

Are there any pre-season trials scheduled?

 

[Cold Roses]

Too soon.

To Rich’s point, I’m looking forward to seeing how CHT develops this year. He’s had a couple of seasons to get used to the pace of first grade now, and we really should be seeing signs of whether he’s got the goods or not.

 

[Izz]

CHT will go all right, imo. Playing FG every week last season was what he needed, not the up and down bollocks Kearney did with him. I think we'll see the benefits of that consistent playing time/development this season.

Tbh, i think our only spine weakness is Kodi

 

[jaseg]

After all these years it takes more than an off season for me to get excited about the Warriors.

Who bloody knows, but it'll probably be bad.

 

[TheDMC]

Kane Williamson.

 

[sup42]

I am excited.

So many decent big forwards, I am looking forward to seeing us run over the top of a few teams for a change.

I am sick of watching the Warriors pinch meters.

I want them to just go straight and hard for the gap between defenders, and for some pigs to put their hands up to bush crash.

I dunno how we will go, although if you start with a good pack you are over half way there.

I thought we might see some home games after the rapid approval of the Vaccine.

However with the new strains, that is looking unlikely, old Covid is hard enough to contain, New Covid is looking extremely hard to contain.

It would seem nuts to risk the economy of New Zealand for a league game or two, not unless Aussie is completely clean, and they have not yet achieved that status through this whole thing.

More realistic way to set your hopes, is to imagine it might be possible towards the end of the season.

Hope I am wrong, but even the Vaccine roll out in countries that are in dire need is happening at barely half the rate they had hoped (not to say NZ and Aus cannot do it better than England and the US).

 

[JJ]

Will be interesting to see whether these “good” middle forwards, AFB aside, are actually any good week in week out in the NRL. Evidence so far is, well, not compelling

 

[sup42]

Will be interesting to see whether these “good” middle forwards, AFB aside, are actually any good week in week out in the NRL. Evidence so far is, well, not compelling

Injury willing, the key is probably that big units Katoa and Harris can play long minutes. They are really big guys in their own right, with big motors.

BMM is best off the bench, at least that was what his highlights package from the ESL shows, barn storming runs.

Ah Mau was always rated as a bench Prop at the Dragons. Again they can role him off the bench and you get that balance between a straight runner like Leeson and a hole running bursting forward like BMM.

I think having forwards who can actually roll on off RTS and Ken will make a big difference.

The Warriors back three was our go forward...at least now that will be go forward plus.

 

[Fufu Andronez]

I really hope they unleash the Fijian kid Ratuva in the trials.

I'd love to see if he's got wheels or not. Been a long time since we've had genuine speed on a wing. Probably Denan Kemp and he was only here for 5 minutes

 

[sup42]

I really hope they unleash the Fijian kid Ratuva in the trials.

I'd love to see if he's got wheels or not. Been a long time since we've had genuine speed on a wing. Probably Denan Kemp and he was only here for 5 minutes

The Fish too.

But yeah amazing how when we don't have props for Wingers, we end up with Paddy T. or Bill T.

The talent is just not there in the local league.

It seems a life time since the Warriors had the perfect modern day Wing prototype. Big tall, fast, perfect timing on attack and in defence, reading the play like a goat....tall under the high ball....

I miss you Shaun Hoppe....