Kearney is out to move on over ref dramas
Warriors coach Stephen Kearney wants to move on from the officiating dramas that has encircled the game this week but admits he has taken his concerns to the NRL referees’ boss.
The men on the whistle have been the hot topic over the last seven days, with high profile blunders and coaches such as Ricky Stuart (Raiders) and Kearney leading the calls for change.
It’s also led to leading referee Gerard Sutton being supposedly “demoted” to the Titans-Warriors clash on Sunday, with the NRL deeming it a “lower profile” match.
That language has led to claims the governing body has been disrespectful of the Auckland club.
“The reality of it is there has been enough commentary on it,” said Kearney, when asked about the refereeing controversy. “We need to move on and I am sure the powers that be will sort out the process and making sure that we improve it. I think there is enough that has been said about it.”
However, Kearney admitted he had spoken at length with head of referees Bernie Sutton, presumably over some of the curious calls in the Storm clash as well as the failure in that game to conform to edicts pre-match by the NRL.
“I’ve spoken to Bernie and that is the process,” said Kearney. “I made sure that I followed that up [but] what I spoke to Bernie about is between me and Bernie.”
Kearney also said he had no concerns about Gerard Sutton taking control of their match, despite his recent mistakes.
“Our focus is on Sunday afternoon [and] making sure we prepare the best we can,” said Kearney.
“I’m not worried about the referee’s performance, I’m worried about our performance. I’m not going into the game thinking that a bad referee’s call is going to cost us the game. We need to turn up with the right attitude and ready to play, and that’s all we can concentrate on.”
Warriors playmaker Blake Green, who missed his first match of the season last week but will return for the Titans encounter, admitted the “lower profile” tag could be viewed as disrespectful but he wasn’t fazed by it.
“That’s their opinion, hopefully we get a big crowd and maybe we are a bit more important than how people see us,” said Green. “We can’t control what other people’s opinions are.” Ash Taylor v Shaun Johnson. Taylor has come under fire at different stages of the season and has been feeling the heat again lately after some up-and-down performances. The main knock on Taylor is that he looks content to sit back and let the game happen around him. The same criticism has been levelled at Johnson, though he has been much more consistent this season. The Warriors' half will welcome the return of Blake Green this weekend, as the pair seem to bring the best out in each other.
Again the main factor here is what the Titans get out of Taylor. If he can weave some of the magic he's capable of and be a true leader, an upset isn't out of the question. The Titans also need a collectively strong performance from their forwards to try to take some of the sting out of the Warriors' big pack.
The Warriors should have too much attacking potency in their spine, especially if the irrepressible Issac Luke is passed fit. If Luke, Johnson and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck lead the way the Warriors will have too much pace out wide. They should also look to utilise their size and speed up front.
The Warriors dominate this match-up, winning 14 of their past 15 games against the Gold Coast. They are unbeaten at Cbus Super Stadium since 2010. David Fusitu'a has scored seven tries in seven games against the Titans.
Warriors hooker Issac Luke and second-rower Tohu Harris are racing to prove their fitness before the team travels across to the Gold Coast for Sunday’s NRL clash against the Titans.
The two Kiwi internationals took limited part in training yesterday and will undergo fitness tests this morning before the side travels across the Tasman ahead of the match at Robina.
Luke sat out the latter half of the session after re-aggravating a preexisting calf injury in last Sunday’s loss to Melbourne, while Harris ran with his knee heavily strapped as he prepares to return following three weeks on the sidelines.
Coach Stephen Kearney admitted there was a chance the pair may have to remain in Auckland.
“They’ll have to be quick. We’ll see how they get through tonight and pull up.”
However, Kearney was more optimistic about five-eighth Blake Green’s chances of returning from a rib cartilage injury suffered in the dying stages of the win over Brisbane a fortnight ago.
The 31-yearold was struggling to pass the ball at training last week before being ruled out of the match against the Storm but has made good progress in his recovery over the last few days.
Back-rower Leivaha Pulu has been named in the extended reserves for his first NRL match since overcoming a foot injury and could be promoted to the starting side if Harris is ruled