Luke and Blair face drop to reserve grade

Two of the most senior Warriors could be playing reserve grade this week.

Coach Stephen Kearney has named an unchanged team to face the Panthers on Friday, which means no place for Adam Blair and Issac Luke in the 17.

It’s not a surprise, as it would have been difficult to justify dropping anyone from the team that beat the Dragons 26-18 last Saturday.

But it will be a strange sight if it comes to pass, as Blair (297 NRL games, 47 tests) and Luke (260 NRL games, 42 tests) are two of the best players this country has produced and the most experienced NRL players at Mt Smart.

However, Blair (33) has struggled for form this season, and was also hampered by a one-game suspension last weekend, while 31-year-old Luke has been affected by niggling injuries and a concussion.

The situation is also a reflection of the increasing competition for places at the Warriors, with middle forward Ligi Sao proving his worth with a compelling effort on Saturday, and hookers Nathaniel Roache and Karl Lawton justifying their inclusion ahead of Luke against the Dragons.

Of the 17 named, hooker Roache (back), second rower Tohu Harris (knee) and utility forward Jazz Tevaga (foot) didn’t train yesterday.

Roache left the field late in the match on Saturday but Kearney said his back injury was not related to the lumbar spine issue which saw him miss all of last season.

Harris has been managing a knee complaint since aggravating an old injury in the round seven clash with the Storm. He has trained only on alternate days for the past fortnight, and copped another knock in the Magic Round encounter.

Kearney is confident the trio will feature at Penrith Park, though the short turnaround doesn’t help.

The Warriors travel to Penrith tomorrow after putting together an impressive second half against the Dragons, one in which they failed to complete just one set (17 from 18) and ran at 91 per cent for the match (30 from 33 sets).

Though Penrith are badly out of form — last Friday’s 30-4 mauling by the Tigers was their fifth loss in a row — they will still be a tough proposition.

The club held crisis meetings this week and will be expected to rebound. The Panthers have won seven of the last nine encounters between the two teams.