Defeat resembles training run
Warriors concede 11 tries in a lacklustre effort well short of first-grade standard
On this evidence, the Warriors will be happy that most of the country are currently engrossed in the Olympics.
It means this game — which was a highly forgettable performance — might disappear under the radar, as the Rabbitohs smashed their way to a 60-22 victory.
There is no disgrace in losing to this South Sydney juggernaut, especially given the Warriors are in a rut and missing some key players, but this was well below the standards expected.
The Rabbitohs crossed for 11 tries, and could have had a few more, as the Warriors fell to their seventh successive defeat. It continued an awful record against Souths, with 11 losses in their past 12 encounters.
They were again cruelly hit on the injury front, losing Jack Murchie and Eliesa Katoa to concussion in the first half, then Addin Fonua-Blake midway through the second.
In the first half, the Warriors endured probably their worst 20-minute spell of the season, conceding five tries.
At times, it looked like a training run for Wayne Bennett’s team, as they broke the line at will.
The Warriors were their own worst enemies, with several soft errors, something you can’t afford against any team, let alone an established top-four outfit.
In the midst of yesterday’s carnage, the Warriors scored some nice tries, but it was scant consolation.
Few players emerged with any credit, though wing Dallin WateneZelezniak ran with gusto and Josh Curran got through 51 tackles
The Warriors made an ideal start, as Watene-Zelezniak snaffled a loose ball and sprinted from halfway. It was a nice moment for the new recruit, who had missed the birth of his child on Friday night, with his wife in New South Wales.
Unfortunately, the bright beginning didn’t last. The Warriors seem to make more unforced errors than any other NRL team, and it continued with some early mistakes from Reece Walsh.
The first was unfortunate, as his kick hit the back of a Rabbitohs forward, but the next two were poor. The teenager put an attacking bomb a couple of metres over the sideline, then sent a kickoff beyond the dead ball line.
That meant instant pressure and the Rabbitohs didn’t need a second invitation. They embarked on an attacking blitz, with five tries in 20 minutes. Tom Burgess powered over twice from close range, as it appeared all the homework on the big English unit had been forgotten.
South Sydney had some brilliant touches, with Latrell Mitchell’s pass to set up Cameron Murray one of the offloads of the year, as the fullback flung a pass from nowhere while being driven to the ground.
But mostly it was just poor defence, at times embarrassing, and far from first-grade standard.
The Warriors were on their heels, not advancing to pressure the Souths playmakers. The defensive structure went missing and contact was half hearted, as they were continually exposed up the middle.
There was a late first-half recovery, with two tries in four minutes before the break. Marcelo Montoya crossed acrobatically, after smart lead-up work from Kodi Nikorima and Chad Townsend. Their third try was even better, with Nikorima backing up after
setting Watene-Zelezniak free down the sideline with a beautiful pass.
But any hope of a revival was extinguished within 90 seconds of the second half, as Jaydn Su’A powered through four defenders.
Josh Mansour, in his first NRL game for months, eased his way to a second-half brace, before Walsh briefly stemmed the bleeding, anticipating Townsend’s clever kick.
But the Rabbitohs engineered two more tries to hit their biggest ever tally against the Auckland club. Rabbitohs 60 (Tom Burgess 2, Jaxson Paulo, Cameron Murray, Cody Walker, Jaydn Su’A 2, Josh Mansour 2, Keaon Koloamatangi, Latrell Mitchell tries; Adam Reynolds 7 goals, Mitchell goal) Warriors 22 (Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Marcelo Montoya, Kodi Nikorima, Reece Walsh tries; Reece Walsh 3 goals). Halftime 34-16.
● Manly’s stars shone as the Sea Eagles eased to a 44-24 win over the Wests Tigers at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium last night. Halfback Daly Cherry-Evans scored a double, ran for 184m, claimed an intercept and two try assists, and broke seven tackles. Fullback Tom Trbojevic ran for 305m, also scoring a try and breaking nine tackles and the line twice.
The Tigers had led 12-10 approaching halftime but the Sea Eagles scored two tries before the break — including one to centre Morgan Harper, who notched a hat-trick — and two soon after to take a decisive 32-12 lead.
● A day after the Storm laboured to victory against the lowly Cowboys, fellow NRL title favourites Penrith struggled to put away wooden spoon contenders Brisbane last night, winning 18-12 at Suncorp Stadium.
The Panthers took 44 minutes to score ther first try but looked to be easing away with an 18-0 lead heading into the final quarter. But the Broncos scored two converted tries in the last 15 minutes to give last year’s grand finalists an uncomfortable finish.