Turbocharged with options
Selection dilemma: Warriors can pick and choose as they search for revenge
The Warriors have the novelty of a few selection dilemmas ahead of their clash with Manly today after some key players came through the week unscathed.
Assistant coach Justin Morgan confirmed last night Euan Aitken (ankle) and Chanel Harris-Tavita got through the three full contact sessions and will be “very much in the frame” for the Brookvale match.
With Peta Hiku’s absence, Aitken is regarded as their senior centre. He was injured in the first-round win over the Titans, with a succession of different players used in the centres since.
Harris-Tavita was first-choice halfback until suffering a stress fracture in round two against the Knights, with Sean O’Sullivan, Bayley Sironen and Reece Walsh used alongside Kodi Nikorima in the last six games.
It’s novel for the coaching staff, who haven’t had the luxury this season of extended options.
“It’s nice to have an actual discussion around the selection table rather than just giving the physios a quick call and asking who’s available, and slotting them somewhere into the 21,” said Morgan. “Over the last [few weeks], we’ve struggled to get a full fully fit 21, so it’s a good position.”
The decisions won’t be straightforward. If judged fully fit, Aitken will be hard to leave out, as the backline needs his experience.
But Adam Pompey has impressed, averaging more than 120 running metres and crossing for four tries this season, while Rocco Berry showed his potential in his second NRL game last Sunday.
It’s even more difficult with the halves mix. Reece Walsh had ups and downs against the Cowboys but was brilliant on attack and would be hard to drop, though the club are conscious of not overextending the 18-year-old early in his NRL career.
Harris-Tavita has the best kicking game at the club and can also cover dummy half, if the coaches decide that spelling hooker Wayde Egan for a period would be productive. But they will be wary of the optimal interchange mix, with Jazz Tevaga and three bigger bodies used on the bench most weeks.
“It does give us a few options,” said Morgan. “[Harris-Tavita] can slip back into his normal role or he can play a bit more of a utility role, which he has done before. Reece has done an excellent job in the No 6 position.
“It takes a little bit of the pressure off, having a key player come back into the squad and asking him to do so much . . . it’s a little bit of a softer landing for him coming back, so that’s good.”
Morgan admitted there was a sense of revenge for the Warriors, who felt they got “their pocket picked” with the last-second 13-12 defeat in round five.
It was their worst display of the season and served to kick-start the Sea Eagles, making them a much tougher prospect than they otherwise might have been today.
The Sydney team have also been bolstered by the presence of Tom Trbojevic, who changes the dimension of their attack.
“With the fullbacks we’ve come up against in the last few weeks, namely [Matt] Dufty and Val Holmes, we did a lot of work leading into those games about defending those guys, but this is a whole new challenge,” Morgan said.
“Tommy Turbo is a whole new level from those guys. And that’s no disrespect [towards them] but he’s a blue riband player. He’s in the Roger Tuivasa-Sheck category.”
Trbojevic, who Morgan admitted has been a focal point of the Warriors’ planning, has scored seven tries in seven games against the Auckland club and was absent for both the defeats suffered last year by Manly.