Warriors lap

Warriors coach Stacey Jones says they have a spring in their step as they prepare for their first NRL match at Mt Smart Stadium since August 2019.

Sunday’s clash with Wests Tigers is the only game the Warriors will play in a span of 26 days in the middle of their season.

Their last outing was on June 18 – a 40-6 loss to the Penrith Panthers at their temporary home, Moreton Daily Stadium in Redcliffe, that was followed by a weekend off for the representative round.

After Sunday’s match, to be played in front of a 26,000-strong sell-out crowd, they have a weekend off with a bye, before playing the Parramatta Eels in Sydney on July 15.

This weekend therefore stands alone and is set to be a special occasion, as the Warriors return home for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic more than two years ago.

Jones has been in charge for less than a month following the sudden exit of Nathan Brown and has overseen losses to the Cronulla Sharks and Panthers which left the Warriors sitting 15th on the ladder, ahead of only the Gold Coast Titans.

They have nine games remaining and will be hoping that returning to Mt Smart – the venue for four of those games – will give them a boost as they look to avoid finishing with the wooden spoon.

The full Warriors squad has been in town since Monday evening and Jones said he had noticed a difference among his troops.

‘‘There’s certainly a spring in their step,’’ he said yesterday.

‘‘I don’t think they’re too crash hot on the weather [compared to their Brisbane base], but they’re certainly enjoying being back home in their own gymnasium, their own meeting rooms and out on the field.

‘‘There has certainly been a really good vibe around the place.’’

The positive vibes of the Warriors’ long-awaited homecoming stand in stark contrast with their on-field record of late.

At the end of April, they bounced back from a 70-10 trouncing at the hands of the Melbourne Storm by pipping the Canberra Raiders 21-20.

But since then, they’ve lost seven on the bounce, starting with a painful 29-10 loss to a Sharks side that had 12 men for 64 minutes and 11 men for 10.

One more defeat will make for