Round 7 vs Warriors

[Belta]

I did not see the Warriors loss to Brisbane and acknowledge they have a few injuries but I must say I am surprised at the posters on this thread who are not giving the Warriors much credit for thier early season form. Along with us they have been the top team of the comp thus far. It’s 1 v 2.

Up until last week their opponents have been unable to match thier physicality. Their wingers are extremely hard to contain and begin thier power domination. IMO we can match thier physical game and will have more points resulting in a close win. As mentioned early points will be critical in a tough, tough encounter. Need to muscle up if we want the two points in this one. Pulu and Kata being out will help our cause.

 

[ALSGI]

I did not see the Warriors loss to Brisbane and acknowledge they have a few injuries but I must say I am surprised at the posters on this thread who are not giving the Warriors much credit for thier early season form. Along with us they have been the top team of the comp thus far. It’s 1 v 2.

Up until last week their opponents have been unable to match thier physicality. Their wingers are extremely hard to contain and begin thier power domination. IMO we can match thier physical game and will have more points resulting in a close win. As mentioned early points will be critical in a tough, tough encounter. Need to muscle up if we want the two points in this one. Pulu and Kata being out will help our cause.

I haven’t seen all their games but I did watch them against Brisbane. They played like the Warriors of the last couple years and Brisbane weren’t that good. Also saw their game against Canberra and that was a miracle win that I credit more to Canberra losing it. Didn’t see their big win against the Roosters or the other games but from what I’ve seen we have them covered comfortably.

 

[Belta]

ALSGI said;

“...from what I’ve seen we have them covered...”

It will be great if this does eventuate. A win against the Warriors would be so huge on a few levels. Mary has implied he’ll use our depth around Origin so we don’t burnt out especially if we are in a good position. Considering the form of Lawrie, Sele, Host, Lomax and Field in ISP they will hopefully get some first grade games in the not too distant future.

 

[Dennis Papaioannou]

I did not see the Warriors loss to Brisbane and acknowledge they have a few injuries but I must say I am surprised at the posters on this thread who are not giving the Warriors much credit for thier early season form. Along with us they have been the top team of the comp thus far. It’s 1 v 2.

Up until last week their opponents have been unable to match thier physicality. Their wingers are extremely hard to contain and begin thier power domination. IMO we can match thier physical game and will have more points resulting in a close win. As mentioned early points will be critical in a tough, tough encounter. Need to muscle up if we want the two points in this one. Pulu and Kata being out will help our cause.

The Warriors are no push overs especially with Green in the team to steady the ship and bring some smarts to the equation.
However the main reason they have done so well is their defence.
They are winning games because they are defending well.
But then so is ours
I also think that if we dominate possession, we will win easily.

 

[TruSaint]

Underestimate them at our peril.

They are a different beast this year. Strong all over the park, and as mentioned, a controlling influence in Green. They have always had the talent, but their weakness has been ball control, defence and game management. This year, they have addressed those deficiencies. So far anyway.

Very happy with our form, and expect a close win, but we need to close out games in the final quarter, as we have been susceptible to leaking points late in games on a couple of occasions.

 

[getsmarty]

TEAM LISTS

NRL team: Round 7 v New Zealand Warriors
Author
Dragons.com.au dragons.com.au
Timestamp
Tue 17 Apr 2018, 04:01 PM

St George Illawarra Dragons coach Paul McGregor has named his mandatory 21-man squad to face the New Zealand Warriors on April 20 at Mt Smart Stadium.

The game will kick-off at 6pm (AEST)/8pm (NZST) for what will be skipper Gareth Widdop's 100th NRL game as a Dragon.

The current season's NRL top pointscorer Widdop debuted for the Red V in Round 1, 2014 and has only missed four games since joining the club from the Melbourne Storm.

"Geez my time here has gone extremely quickly but I consider it a huge honour to play 100 games for the Dragons," Widdop said.

"It's certainly been a rollercoaster but my family and I have enjoyed every second of it and I've loved my football here since my arrival."

The only change to the 21-man squad named prior to the Dragons' 40-20 win over the Sharks in Round 6 is that Mitchell Allgood has been named in place of Reece Robson.

NRL squad for Round 6 v Cronulla Sharks:

1. Matt Dufty – sponsored by Illawarra Mercury/St George & Sutherland Shire Leader
2. Nene Macdonald – sponsored by Relativity in the Loop
3. Euan Aitken – sponsored by University of Wollongong
4. Tim Lafai – sponsored by Kingsgrove Sports Centre
5. Jason Nightingale – sponsored by SMAI
6. Gareth Widdop (c) – sponsored by Dynamic Projects
7. Ben Hunt – sponsored by Paul's Customs and Forwarding Solutions
8. James Graham – sponsored by EFEX
9. Cameron McInnes – sponsored by Floormania
10. Paul Vaughan – sponsored by My Muscle Chef
11. Tyson Frizell – sponsored by Val Morgan
12. Tariq Sims – sponsored by Destination Wollongong
13. Jack de Belin – sponsored by Wollongong Jetski

Interchange:
14. Jeremy Latimore – sponsored by Addbuild Additions
15. Kurt Mann – sponsored by Wollongong Diagnostics
16. Leeson Ah Mau – sponsored by Westfund
17. Hame Sele – sponsored by Domus Lighting
18. Jacob Host
19. Zac Lomax
20. Mitchell Allgood
21. Blake Lawrie

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2018/04/17/nrl-team-round-7-v-new-zealand-warriors/

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Don't worry we're specials this week.
Why, because i swore at the start of the year that i would not pick the warriors in my tipping comp this year.First 5 weeks stuck to my guns.Last week i relented especially because they were playing a badly out of form broncos who were missing players & of course the rest is history.
I'll make sure we win by tipping them again this week.Everybody happy

Im with you mate...we are specials Friday night.....unfortunately not as confident on Anzac Day.....I keerp banging on about this point but travelling to NZ on the Fri then playing Wed......The Roosters play in Sydney on the Thursday its only I xtra days rest but its a huge advantage when you consider how the pace of the game is played these days...having said that the whistle blowing refs gave slowed things down a peg or two

 

[getsmarty]

TEAM LISTS

ISP team: Round 7 v New Zealand Warriors
Author
Dragons.com.au dragons.com.au
Timestamp
Tue 17 Apr 2018, 04:00 PM

St George Illawarra Intrust Super Premiership coach Mat Head has named his Round 7 team to play against the New Zealand Warriors on Saturday, April 21 at Mt Smart Stadium.

The game will commence at 3pm and will follow the Dragons' Jersey Flegg clash against the Warriors.

Darren Nicholls (throat) won't travel across the ditch but is expected to only miss a week of football. Tristan Sailor will make his Intrust Super Premiership debut at five-eighth as a result.

ISP team for Round 7 v New Zealand Warriors:

1. Jai Field
2. John Tohi
3. Patrick Herbert
4. Reuben Garrick
5. Jordan Pereira
6. Tristan Sailor
7. Jack Payne
8. Damien Sironen
9. Reece Robson
10. Josh Kerr
11. Ashley Nisbet
12. Jackson Ford
13. Blake Lawrie

Interchange:
14. Joe Lovodua
15. James Hasson
17. TJ Uele
20. Stuart Mason


https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2018/04/17/isp-team-round-7-v-new-zealand-warriors/

 

[getsmarty]

MATCH PREVIEW

Warriors v Dragons: Mannering starts against unbeaten Dragons
Author
Tim Keeble
Timestamp
Tue 17 Apr 2018, 05:20 PM

For five weeks the Warriors enchanted us with their free-wheeling nothing-to-lose approach. The Broncos brought them back to earth with last week's win in enemy territory and everybody's waiting to see if the honeymoon is over or if they are legitimate top eight contenders.

It's not as though the Warriors were bad against an injury-weakened Brisbane, but there was a faint whiff of complacency about their performance and they can't afford to take anyone lightly. Coach Stephen Kearney should have no trouble getting his side up for the unbeaten competition leaders.

There were a few rumblings after the Dragons scraped home against Souths in round five that a loss was just around the corner. Well it wasn't around the first corner, as the Dragons romped to a big win over crosstown rivals Cronulla, leaving them battered and bruised in the process.

Given their good record in Auckland over the years, it might not be around the next corner either.

Key match-up: This has all the makings of a game that will come down to how the halves influence their respective teams. Hard as it is to go past Shaun Johnson v Ben Hunt, the contest between classy five-eighths Blake Green and Gareth Widdop carries a touch more intrigue. They are similar players of a similar age and whoever is the most effective will impact heavily on the result.

For the Warriors to win: Stick to the basics and don't get caught up in their opponents' game plan. The Warriors need to make an aggressive statement in the first 20 minutes and convince the unbeaten Dragons that they're in for their toughest game thus far. A world-class performance from Johnson also wouldn't hurt.

For the Dragons to win: Weathering an expected early storm will be paramount for the competition leaders. If their hard-working forwards contain their Warriors counterparts, Widdop and Hunt will provide ample scoring opportunities for the Dragons backs.

Warriors stat attack: The Warriors are the NRL's top team for offloads with 98 in six games, well ahead of second-best Manly (82). Winger David Fusitu’a has scored 10 tries in his past five games at Mt Smart Stadium.

Dragons stat attack: St George Illawarra seemingly have the wood on the Warriors, winning 13 of their past 14 meetings. The Dragons are the NRL's most prolific attacking team with an average of almost 33 points per game.

And another thing: Dragons five-eighth Gareth Widdop will play his 100th game for the club on Friday. The Englishman is having an outstanding season, leading the NRL in points, try assists, goals and line-break assists.

Prediction: Dragons by 13

Match: Warriors vs Dragons

6:00pm

Home Team

Warriors

3rd Position


Away Team

Dragons

1st Position

Venue: Mt Smart Stadium

Match broadcasters:

• Fox League
• LIVE PASS

Buy Tickets
Warriors v St George Illawarra Dragons, 8pm NZT (6pm AEST) Friday at Mt Smart Stadium

Warriors: 1 Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (c), 2 David Fusitu'a, 3 Peta Hiku, 4 Solomone Kata, 5 Ken Maumalo, 6 Blake Green, 7 Shaun Johnson, 15 Sam Lisone, 9 Issac Luke, 10 Agnatius Paasi, 11 Simon Mannering, 12 Tohu Harris, 13 Adam Blair

Interchange: 8 Bunty Afoa 14 Jazz Tevaga, 16 Albert Vete, 17 Anthony Gelling

Reserves: 18 Chris Satae, 19 Mason Lino, 20 Isaiah Papali'i, 21 Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad

Centre Solomone Kata has been named to start despite the club announcing earlier in the week he would be sidelined for up to a month with an ankle injury. Simon Mannering starts in the back row for Leivaha Pulu (foot) with Albert Vete joining the bench. Bunty Afoa starts at prop for Sam Lisone (bench).

Dragons: 1 Matthew Dufty, 2 Nene Macdonald, 3 Euan Aitken, 4 Tim Lafai, 5 Jason Nightingale, 6 Gareth Widdop (c), 7 Ben Hunt, 8 James Graham, 9 Cameron McInnes, 10 Paul Vaughan, 11 Tyson Frizell, 12 Tariq Sims, 13 Jack De Belin

Interchange: 14 Jeremy Latimore, 15 Kurt Mann, 16 Leeson Ah Mau, 17 Hame Sele

Reserves: 18 Jacob Host, 19 Zachary Lomax, 20 Mitchell Allgood, 21 Blake Lawrie

As expected the Dragons are unchanged from their win over Cronulla.

Head-to-head: Played 26; Dragons 21 wins; Warriors 5 wins

Matches at venue: Played 10; Dragons 6 wins; Warriors 4 wins

2017 results: Dragons won 26-12 at Jubilee Oval in round 4 and 30-14 at FMG Stadium Waikato

Points per game: Warriors 23.7; Dragons 32.3

Points conceded per game: Warriors 15.3; Dragons 13.3

Televised: Live on Fox League

https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/04/17...-st-george-illawarra-dragons-preview-round-7/

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Underestimate them at our peril.

They are a different beast this year. Strong all over the park, and as mentioned, a controlling influence in Green. They have always had the talent, but their weakness has been ball control, defence and game management. This year, they have addressed those deficiencies. So far anyway.

Very happy with our form, and expect a close win, but we need to close out games in the final quarter, as we have been susceptible to leaking points late in games on a couple of occasions.

Mate there wont be much in it, but im pretty positive with this one.....Roosters game is the big concern to me......sounds crazy but if we were to loose either I would prefer to loose in NZ....think the Roosters in Sydney is a bigger yardstick for us to honest..thats why Marys use of the bench is critical against .The Warriors over there

 

[TruSaint]

Mate there wont be much in it, but im pretty positive with this one.....Roosters game is the big concern to me......sounds crazy but if we were to loose either I would prefer to loose in NZ....think the Roosters in Sydney is a bigger yardstick for us to honest..thats why Marys use of the bench is critical against .The Warriors over there

I would like 7/7, and go hell bent on Anzac day...
Selfish I am

I read somewhere that the last time we went 7 undefeated was 1959. Nostalgic old fart that I am.

 

[Gareth67]

For all of those who didn't get my post saying, Warriors come out to play. It is from a classic move called The Warriors. Anyone who hasn't seen it, I recommend it. Here is the clip from the movie, but I think you are better off not watching the clip and watching the whole movie instead.

Frank , that scared the living crap out of me , but it also took me back to the good ole days when a bloke walked into the early - opener at Homebush . All those abattoir workers who would cut your throat for 2 bob , broken beer bottles and schooner glasses on the floor which was covered in sawdust . And if you were very lucky you may even had come across a tooth among the sawdust , scary . Only a place for the very brave or the young and foolish, I fell into the latter category and never returned again .

 

[Life's Good]

TEAM LISTS

NRL team: Round 7 v New Zealand Warriors
Author
Dragons.com.au dragons.com.au
Timestamp
Tue 17 Apr 2018, 04:01 PM

St George Illawarra Dragons coach Paul McGregor has named his mandatory 21-man squad to face the New Zealand Warriors on April 20 at Mt Smart Stadium.

The game will kick-off at 6pm (AEST)/8pm (NZST) for what will be skipper Gareth Widdop's 100th NRL game as a Dragon.

The current season's NRL top pointscorer Widdop debuted for the Red V in Round 1, 2014 and has only missed four games since joining the club from the Melbourne Storm.

"Geez my time here has gone extremely quickly but I consider it a huge honour to play 100 games for the Dragons," Widdop said.

"It's certainly been a rollercoaster but my family and I have enjoyed every second of it and I've loved my football here since my arrival."

The only change to the 21-man squad named prior to the Dragons' 40-20 win over the Sharks in Round 6 is that Mitchell Allgood has been named in place of Reece Robson.

NRL squad for Round 6 v Cronulla Sharks:

1. Matt Dufty – sponsored by Illawarra Mercury/St George & Sutherland Shire Leader
2. Nene Macdonald – sponsored by Relativity in the Loop
3. Euan Aitken – sponsored by University of Wollongong
4. Tim Lafai – sponsored by Kingsgrove Sports Centre
5. Jason Nightingale – sponsored by SMAI
6. Gareth Widdop (c) – sponsored by Dynamic Projects
7. Ben Hunt – sponsored by Paul's Customs and Forwarding Solutions
8. James Graham – sponsored by EFEX
9. Cameron McInnes – sponsored by Floormania
10. Paul Vaughan – sponsored by My Muscle Chef
11. Tyson Frizell – sponsored by Val Morgan
12. Tariq Sims – sponsored by Destination Wollongong
13. Jack de Belin – sponsored by Wollongong Jetski

Interchange:
14. Jeremy Latimore – sponsored by Addbuild Additions
15. Kurt Mann – sponsored by Wollongong Diagnostics
16. Leeson Ah Mau – sponsored by Westfund
17. Hame Sele – sponsored by Domus Lighting
18. Jacob Host
19. Zac Lomax
20. Mitchell Allgood
21. Blake Lawrie

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2018/04/17/nrl-team-round-7-v-new-zealand-warriors/

I’m realistic to expect no changes and have no issue with pick & stick given our current streak.
Having said that I would make one change - Host in place of Latimore on the bench.
I like the idea of our run on forwards getting the bash on early, supported by LAM off the bench(hopefully)wearing down the Warriors. With Host (& Sele) coming on as replacements we get more mobility and upside with offloads & footwork that isn’t what I would call a strength of Latimore(he’s more into the dirty runs & metres that we have been getting out of LAM). Also, I’d like Host to get minutes in preparation for use during Origin.

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

I would like 7/7, and go hell bent on Anzac day...
Selfish I am

I read somewhere that the last time we went 7 undefeated was 1959. Nostalgic old fart that I am.

Me to wouldnt that be something...... you are an old fart mate....but Im fartier than you...look at my birth certificate...cheers bud

 

[Redhoopz]

Mate there wont be much in it, but im pretty positive with this one.....Roosters game is the big concern to me......sounds crazy but if we were to loose either I would prefer to loose in NZ....think the Roosters in Sydney is a bigger yardstick for us to honest..thats why Marys use of the bench is critical against .The Warriors over there

Pretty much on the same page with you... It will be a tough away game plus a short turn around against the Roosters. If we had to drop one game out of the two, I would take the loss on Friday night for a win on Anzac Day.

But I would happily take wins from both games.

 

[Frank Facer]

I think we will beat the Warriors and then beat Easts too.

 

[ALSGI]

I think we will beat the Warriors and then beat Easts too.

Totally agree, f**k this losing shit, maybe one out of the two shit, I’d rather lose this to that shit - we’re going to win both people. FFS climb on board f**krs.
Worriers are shitting themselves!
Got it?

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

I think we will beat the Warriors and then beat Easts too.

Hope your right Frank

 

[SEAT 1A]

I was looking forward to the two teams going at it undefeated.

NZ has had the lost that was to come so, it's our turn up again.

Hopefully, Mann can look for more meters and open it up late in the game and Do it for Gareth. .

Dragons 1-12.

 

[getsmarty]

McGregor wary of Warriors bounce back factor

• 
  Mitch Jennings

Dragons Den News

TOUGH NIGHT: Dragons coach Paul McGregor is wary of the Warriors bounce back after they suffered their first defeat of the season to the Broncos last week. Picture: AAP

IT’S taken the sting out of the PR sales pitch, but Dragons coach Paul McGregor believes New Zealand are a more dangerous proposition after suffering their first loss of the season last week.

Friday’s clash in Auckland was shaping as a blockbuster between two undefeated sides before Brisbane shocked the Warriors at home last week.

It’s robbed fans of a mouth-watering showdown between to undefeated sides but McGregor said he never bought into the narrative.

“Everyone was speaking about it but that’s the perspective of the fan more than anything else, not as a coach,” McGregor said.

“Obviously we’re playing a quality side, they’ve got a lot of Internationals, they’ve won five of their first six. They’re pretty well and International spine.

“[Blake] Greeny’s gone over there and really played with a lot of composure and directs the team around. [Shaun] Johnson’s one of the best open footy players you’ll ever see, along with Roger [Tuivasa-Sheck] so we’ve got to limit their opportunities in [good] field position.

“I’m expecting a very physical team, a forward pack that runs hard, they lead the competition in off-loads.

“They’ve been challenged by their coach that they lacked energy last week so it’s definitely a big challenge.”

The Dragons remain the only undefeated team following their 40-20 win over Cronulla last week, with their 6-0 start the longest winning streak of McGregor’s coaching tenure.

They’ll also head into Friday’s match having used the fewest number of players through the opening six rounds of a season since the North Sydney Bears’ 7-0 start to their 1994 campaign.

With almost half his side also in contention for representative call-ups, McGregor said it’s important his side ride the good fortune as deep into the season as possible.

“You want to put a gap on teams when you’re winning,” he said.

“It’s very important to start the year well, it doesn’t matter what anyone says. A healthy roster definitely gives you confidence going into each week. It’s important you take advantage of that.

“People are saying we’re peaking too early or whatever they want to say but, if you’ve got a healthy roster, and you’re winning games of footy, it certainly helps throughout the year when you won’t have a healthy roster and you’ll have people away, possibly, through rep footy.

“People can talk about what we’re doing all they want but we’ve got a vision and we’ve got to have discipline around that and the standards we set.

“We didn’t show the Sharks out best [last week] so we need to show the Warriors our best on Friday night.”


https://www.illawarramercury.com.au/story/5350005/dragons-wary-of-backlash/?cs=3713