Road to playoffs will test Warriors
THE Warriors may have enjoyed their first bye of the season courtesy of last week’s pressurerelieving win, but that can only be the starting point if they are to break their finals drought.
While there have been a few promising signs in the first 14 games of the Stephen Kearney era, a 6-8 record shows that they have been the same old inconsistent Warriors. And with 10 games left in the season they find themselves in the all too familiar position of having to play catch-up.
Twenty-eight competition points are generally considered to be the cut-off point to reach the top eight, and even then it is likely to come down to points difference.
Currently in 11th place on 12 points and with four points to be added from their two byes, the Auckland club has to win six more games to reach that mark.
It is certainly no easy run home with six of their upcoming opponents sitting above them on the ladder, although only one of those is in the top four.
Can they do it? Only if they start showing some significant improvement. Here are the areas they need to address. CONSISTENCY UPFRONT
The biggest concern around the team heading into season proved to be true as, James Gavet aside, the Warriors forwards have struggled to match it with the best packs in the competition. When they have won the physical battle the all-Kiwis spine has flourished, but the problem has been maintaining those performances week in, week out. With Ben Matulino beginning to make his presence felt after returning from injury and Albert Vete coming back from his early-season demotion with a point to prove, there have been signs of improvement over the last few weeks. But with so much depending on winning the ruck, it is imperative that upward trend continues. WIN ON THE ROAD
It sounds simple but is something the Warriors have only done once this year – last week on the Gold Coast. And given their dominant record at Cbus Super Stadium since 2011, they may very well want to consider relocating there. The Warriors have five more games on the road, including tough trips to Perth (against Manly) and Townsville (Cowboys). However, with the other three against Newcastle, South Sydney and the Tigers – the bottom three teams on the table heading into this weekend – if they can’t win those they don’t deserve to make the top eight. SHORE UP RIGHT EDGE
While Kearney needs to make improvements on defence right across the board, there has been one particular area giving the