The Southland Times

Warriors make exodus plans

- David Long david.long@stuff.co.nz

The Warriors have already drawn up a list of potential loan players if three key players head back to New Zealand later this month.

Ken Maumalo, David Fusitu’a and Agnatius Paasi all want to head back to Auckland as their families haven’t been able to join them in Australia and it’s understood Leivaha Pulu also wants to return home.

The players have agreed to a July 19 deadline for the NRL to give them certainty over whether their families can be given exemptions from the Australian government to join them on the Central Coast.

If that doesn’t happen, then they’re off and Warriors interim coach Todd Peyton yesterday said they’d already put together a short list of loan players to bring in as replacemen­ts.

‘‘We’ve drawn up a list, I think it’s prudent that we’re prepared if it does happen,’’ Payten said.

‘‘We’re going to have to go to the NRL, go to the clubs and get them over the line.

‘‘So it would be idiotic to leave it until they go and then we’re caught with our pants down.

‘‘There’s a list being looked at daily and if we haven’t heard anything within a week, we’ll push down that path a bit further.’’

Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V’Landys and NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo had a meeting with Warriors players and staff last Saturday, with V’landys assuring them that he’ll do everything he can to get the families to Australia.

However, with the increased number of coronaviru­s cases in some parts of Australia, his task hasn’t got any easier.

‘‘He said that everything that’s happening in Victoria isn’t helping our situation,’’ Payten said.

‘‘He has reapplied and is taking it higher up the food chain, so to speak. He also spoke of a possible bubble opening up between Queensland and New Zealand.

‘‘I think our best chance is to get the exemption and get our families to self isolate together at a facility.

‘‘That was the thing he pushed the most, but he has only got 20 days to go.’’

Of more immediate concern for the Warriors is Saturday’s game against the Broncos at Central Coast Stadium, where the team will be without Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, who’s serving a one-game ban.

‘‘The plan at the moment is for Peta [Hiku] to go to fullback and Gerard Beale come into the centres,’’ Payten said.

‘‘Peta is very capable, he’s spent a lot of time at fullback in the past with Manly. We trained that way yesterday in preparatio­n.’’

Payten was highly critical of his players after their 50-6 loss to the Storm last weekend and revealed that a number of them have been told they are on notice.

‘‘They responded well,’’ he said.

‘‘I showed them some video, said this was not good enough and I need you to do this. Moving forward, if you give me that effort again, we’ll go with someone else.

‘‘If it happens again, we won’t be picking them, they know that.’’

The loss to the Storm was one of the lowest points of a season that’s already had a fair few of them.

The question will be how the players respond to it. Whether they can get up against a Broncos team that’s in disarray and lost five on the bounce, or continue to go into free fall.

‘‘They were definitely hurting after the game,’’ Payten said.

‘‘We played a pretty smart, tough and ruthless team in the Storm and some of our efforts weren’t good enough.

‘‘But we spoke at length and have had a couple of reviews and it’s clearer now for them what’s expected.’’

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