Pulu to start for Warriors
The Warriors have made a handful of changes for this weekend’s trip to Canberra as they look to start a season 3-0 for the first time in the club’s history.
As expected, Leivaha Pulu has been confirmed to start in the back row for the injured Isaiah Papali’i, who has been sidelined for up to six weeks with a knee injury.
Pulu played the last 73 minutes of Saturday’s 20-8 victory over the Titans after Papali’i suffered a medial ligament strain in his right knee.
It will be the 27-year-old’s first start for the Auckland outfit and his elevation to the run-on side sees fellow former Gold Coast forward Agnatius Paasi brought onto the interchange.
After limited minutes in his first two NRL appearances, dummy-half Sam Cook has dropped to reserve to get more game time.
He has been replaced in the No 14 jersey by Jazz Tevaga, while wing Charnze NicollKlokstad and prop Chris Satae have come onto the extended eight-man bench.
‘‘It’s tough for Isaiah being ruled out for a few weeks after the great start he had to the season,’’ said Warriors coach Stephen Kearney.
Paasi picked up a medial ligament injury after just a few minutes of last month’s trial against Melbourne but returned to feature in the ISP Cup team’s opening two matches.
He was particularly strong in the season-opening win over North Sydney, running for a game-high 190 metres from 21 carries, while playing 57 minutes during last week’s defeat to the Bulldogs.
Tevaga, who is set to make his 16th NRL appearance, was part of the first grade squad that travelled to Perth in round one but did not make the playing 17.
In his first outing of the season last week, he made 53 tackles and 87 metres from 14 runs in reserve grade.
Last week’s victory over the Titans ensured the Warriors kicked off a campaign with backto-back wins for just the third time since their inception in 1995.
It is a completely different story for Canberra, who are 0-2 after two late defeats to the Titans and Knights.
However, GIO Stadium has rarely been a happy hunting ground for the Warriors. In 15 previous meetings there, the Raiders have won 12 times.