Entries Tagged 'Warriors' ↓

Ahh .  .the sweet taste of humble pie . . .

I won’t be surprised to see Brent Tate’s rep career over. Quite simply he is not getting enough opportunities to shine now that he’s playing for the Warriors.

I blogged about Brent Tate when news broke that he had signed with the club - mainly around the pressure he would face being the marquee player in the backline.

No doubt the guy is a very good player, worthy of Queensland and Australia, but we now have a situation where we have a (reported) 400k marquee signing wasting away in the centres.

It’s rather obvious to everyone now that the Warriors needed to buy a decent half back instead.

For Tate’s rep teams, Queensland and Australia, there are no shortage of centres and wingers ready to step up - think of Slater, Hodges, Inglis, Folau, Bell, Tonga etc.

So what now for Brent Tate?

Well he looks frustrated, angry even at times, especially during the away game hidings they have had so far in 2008. In one respect, it’s probably going to develop his leadership skills - as there seems to be a lack of leaders on the field he is taking matters into his own hands and trying to fire up the side. That can only be good for the Warriors. Plus there’s not actually much else he can do anyway.

All he can do is hope things get better, and that coach Ivan Cleary picks a decent halfback.

We should also look at the bigger picture for the Warriors. It won’t go unnoticed in Australia that Tate is struggling, so the next time we attempt to purchase a big name, they will no doubt think twice about crossing the Tasman because of the impact it would have on their career.

Unfortunately they have lost Steve Price and Wade Mckinnon, and the team is stuttering as a result. Neither Tate nor the Warriors could foresee this situation arising.

It will be interesting month as the team becomes more desperate to gain form and confidence. If they do, then we may see Brent Tate show his skills.

Sadly for Tate it’s probably going to be too late to save his rep career.

Manu Vatuvei has been copping flak across the Tasman because of his error rate, and general issues fielding kicks (high and low)

Now, I’m not too worried about our players getting criticised by Australians, that’s par for the course.

What interested me, was that the Warriors saw fit to defend Vatuvei with an article on their website that points out the mistakes of Manu’s peers (other wingers)

The article uses statistics to show that other wingers made more handling errors this season and last.

But it sets an interesting precedent - are the Warriors going to now defend their players that cop criticism in the media? And if they don’t, does that mean they accept the criticism?

Case in point. A week earlier, former Warrior and Kiwi Matthew Ridge was highly critical of Ruben Wiki yet there was no response from the Warriors. Does this mean they believed it?

I’d suggest that when their players cop criticism, they forget defending them in this manner. The best PR for Manu Vatuvei, Ruben Wiki and any other Warrior could ever get is just to go out and play well.

There’s something inherently beautiful about a rookie before he’s taken the field at the top level for the first time. It’s a purity borne of hopes for the future and excitement about the present. These are players who still hold their senior teammates in awe, much like a fan might.

I first encountered this phenomenon during a Warriors open day in the build up to the 2005 season. My wife and I spotted a relatively unknown junior player who we caught completely off guard by requesting his autograph. This stunned teenager, Simon Mannering, has since become a regular fixture of both Warriors and Kiwis teams. For some inexplicable reason, something deep within me insists ours was his first autograph opportunity.

I saw a similar innocence in another rookie during the first round of 2008, when the Warriors played away to the Storm. The club had put on an away match function – a chance to mingle with non-playing team members and then watch the game at a movie theatre – and I found myself talking with Herman Retzlaff, our most recent signing. He asked me my name, and we conversed briefly before going our separate ways.

The half time break saw a stampede of bodies as people rushed to take personal pit stops before the second stanza. As I waited outside the toilets for my wife to accommodate nature’s requests, Herman came by, headed for the men’s.

“Dave!” he called to me. “What did you think of the first half?”

“Nail biting stuff, mate,” I grinned back, surprised that he’d even remembered my name.

“How do you think we’re going to go in the second half?” he asked as he passed by.

“It’s only going to get better,” I replied, revealing in a single sentence just how poor a tipster I am.

It was such a simple and brief exchange, and yet it provided powerful evidence of a positive club culture, something which hasn’t gone unnoticed by recent signing Brent Tate.

After spending seven seasons in first grade with the Brisbane Broncos, (regularly perceived as the benchmark club for off field professionalism), the representative centre recently referred to his new club as “a really professional outfit from the front office right down to the coaching staff”.

And when a player of Tate’s experience says something like that, it pays to listen.

This is a far cry from what the culture used to be like – big personalities getting in the way of the on field excitement, and players of the ilk of Nigel Vagana and Stacey Jones becoming uncertain as to whether or not they would actually get paid as the club spiralled towards bankruptcy.

Fortunately, those days are long gone.

The Warriors are now a club that is respected by fans and players alike. The mere fact that former players Jerry Seuseu and Stacey Jones – both of whom were involved in “that try” in the 2002 grand final – along with foundation captain Dean Bell have returned to work with the club after hanging up their boots, is further testament to the administerial turnaround. In fact, Bell was approached by the previous management but declined because he “didn’t get a good feeling about it”.

Another positive sign is the amount of fan involvement that is not only welcomed but actually sought after by the club. Fan forums have been held, as have away functions allowing for fans to meet players, win prizes, and watch away games live on the big screen. An open and approachable CEO has replaced his somewhat standoffish predecessor. And an away fan season membership is in the works for Australian-based fans of the Auckland club.

This turnaround from management has afforded a similar about turn from the spectators.

When new crowd favourite Wade McKinnon was ruled out for the entire 2008 season through injury following an anterior cruciate ligament tear which required a knee reconstruction, fans on an internet forum organised a large get well card, filled with messages of encouragement, to be delivered directly to the player.

This simple act of kindness – appreciated by McKinnon, who, through a club staff member, thanked those responsible – wouldn’t have been possible in years gone by. Most fans wouldn’t have even tried for fear of being turned away by an impersonal organisation.

If anything, this proves that the gradual process of regaining faith and earning trust from sponsors and fans has finally begun to pay dividends.

And long may it continue.

Herman Retzlaff (L) and David Taylor.

Horrible news for the Warriors today with as star fullback Wade McKinnon is likely to be ruled out for the 2008 NRL season due to a knee injury.

Bad, bad bad . . . .the last year has mainly seen good news from the club - keeping coach Ivan Cleary, making the finals in 2007 etc.

This is not the fault of the club, it’s just a horrible, freak accident sustained during a trial game (the words ’salt’ and ‘wound’ spring to mind here’

So how will the Warriors club react?

Will they allow this to screw up the season? Or will they keep on their steady up ward path. I suspect the latter will occur.

Meanwhile, the contenders to take Wade McKinnon’s spot are Aiden Kirk and Patrick Ah Van. I hope Ah Van gets a run - he’s a good up and coming player who has impressed me.

Oh well, at least this will reduce the chance that Wade McKinnon swears on TV this year!

2007 could have been the greatest year in our history as we may have ended it holding world championships in Rugby, Cricket (one day and twenty20) Netball and of course the America’s cup. Suffice to say we got none of those. Anyways, this is how I saw the best and worst of the 2007 sporting year.

Best Cricket Match
It was the Hamilton run chase by the Black Caps against the Aussies for the Chappell Haddlee series. Chasing a mammoth 347 to win, we were gone at 41/4. Enter Peter Fulton and Craig McMillan who carved up the Aussies and got us back in the game.

The innings from Mark Gillespe was surreal as he somehow managed 3 valuable boundaries. McCullum finished the game in style and we had the silverware. A true spine tingler.

Best Rugby League Match
Warriors v Roosters (a 31 all draw). The Warriors were down about 14 (maybe 16) nil, and were playing poorly. But in the space of 15 minutes they tore the Roosters to shreds thanks to Epalahame Lauaki. He started with a two handed off-load in the tackle to Wade McKinnon who sprinted away for the try. Two minutes later Hame threw a long ball which Jerome Ropati picked up on the bounce and (after a few passes) scored under the bar. Five minutes later Hame scored himself. Both coaches had to change their half time speeches such was the turn around.

The Roosters were great as well and when the teams scored two tries each in the second half, a draw was an accurate reflection on the days proceedings. Gary Freeman’s commentary during the game was a highlight for me as well.

Best Rugby Match
Damm, I can’t think of one to be honest. I know there were a few good ones during the rugby world cup, but I never saw them. So lets say it was the France V All Blacks match. Once again the French showed how passion and toughness can win you big games.

The ‘I told you so’ award
That would be me for my ‘why the All Blacks will lose the world cup‘ and my post about the All Blacks fitness. I told you so.

Team of the year
I can’t split two rugby teams. Argentina for their best ever world cup and the English for making the final of the world cup and proving in the process that boring rugby is winning rugby. They also get a pat on the back for peaking at the right time.

Best Houdini Act
Those disappearing All Blacks car flags - soon to be clogging up inorganic collections all over New Zealand

The ‘lets milk the brand for every last dollar’ award
The All Blacks album - soon to be clogging up bargain bins all over New Zealand.

Biggest Choker
Another tie here. First is the New Zealand Rugby League who managed to get rid of Brian Mclennan, the best Kiwi’s coach this generation has seen. They did this by not overturning their ‘Kiwis coach must live in New Zealand’ rule when Bluey took up a job at Leeds. Quite how they came to this decision is beyond me. The results speak for themselves - new coach Gary Kemble is out of his depth at international level. We suffered a record defeat against the Aussies and got beaten by the Poms 3-nil.

The other winner is the New Zealand rugby media, who clearly know very little about sport, especially Chris Rattue who wrote this aweful preview of the France - All Blacks quarter final match.

Best Losers
The Silver Ferns. Not good enough to win the championship but at the end of the game, they came across as gracious in defeat and proud of their own performance.

Highlight of 2007
Winning the Chappell Hadlee 3-nil - an achievement that cannot be underestimated. This was almost as good as winning the cricket world cup.

Low light 2007
The All Blacks at the world cup. Nuff said. Oh and this guy.

So there you have it. I know I’ve missed heaps of teams and players and events, but these are the ones that stuck out for me. Leave a comment if you think I’ve missed something.

Not much to say here aside from the fact it’s great to see Steve Price being selected for Ricky Stuart’s Australian side.

This despite much rumour that Ricky and Steve did not get along.

Nice one Pricey!

Check out this video of Warriors fullback Wade Mckinnon swearing (more than once) in this interview with Sky TV following the NRL semi final defeat at the hands of Paramatta.

It’s quite refreshing to see a player not give a stock standard answer to a stock standard question, and it doesn’t really worry me that he swears.

I wonder is Sky TV will interview Wade Mckinnon next time the Warriors lose a rugby league game?

Watch and enjoy.

Check it out! Tickets to the Warriors v Eels match sold out in three hours, but sportsthought has five of them.

Please note, these are NOT for sale :)

They lost 6 games in a row, and looked down and out. Then came the turn around and the Warriors have lost just 2 of their last 10 games and are on track for a top 8 finish.

Here’s why.

1. Wade Mckinnon. Mckinnon’s form over the last 10 weeks has been fantastic. I’ve mentioned earlier that I believe he has attitude issues, but there is no denying his form. He’s scored plenty of tries, beat a ton of tacklers and has been electric with the ball in hand.
2. Jerome Ropati. The guy who craves the number 6 jersey that was his last year has unselfishly put the Warriors needs before his own and resided in the centres. And he’s been great. Excellent foot work and the ability to get round a man has seen his stocks increase. My opinion of him has changed from earlier in the season.
3. Epalahame Lauaki. Earlier in the season I blogged about how he seemed scared to try his hand for fear of making a mistake and that Ivan Clearly needed to give him free license. I don’t know if that happened or not, but over the last month Lauaki has been devastating. Breaking tackles never seemed so easy. This guy helps make up the best bench in the NRL.
4. Michael Witt. His goal kicking has been a revelation. At the time of writing he’s missed 3 of his last 45 kicks. Dan Carter would be happy to have that record at the world cup! It make’s winning games a lot easier when the scores are increasing in 6’s not 4’s.
5. Ivan Cleary. Losing 6 games on the trot put’s immense pressure on a coach, and there were loud calls for Clearly to make changes (myself included). But he stood firm and backed what he was doing and turned the season around. Credit must also go to the Warriors management for providing the necessary support for Cleary. A strong stable environment has enabled players and coach to focus on football and not get distracted.

Last night the Warriors lost to Canberra, this weeks they face Manly at home in front of a sell out crowd. A top 8 place is not yet guaranteed. Is the run of hot form over?

Hold on folks, it’s about to get interesting!