POMPEY, JTB AND DEBUTANT FREI JOIN 17 FOR BULLDOGS CLASH
Via Warriors Media
Peta Hiku and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak are eyeing their 150th milestone appearances while prop Jackson Frei has been named to make his debut in the Vodafone Warriors’ 22nd-round NRL encounter with Canterbury Bankstown at Redcliffe’s Moreton Daily Stadium on Sunday (1.50pm kick-off local time; 3.50pm NZT).\
With front row resources depleted by suspension, injury and unavailability, head coach Nathan Brown has called up the 23-year-old Queenslander Frei to start alongside in-form captain Addin Fonua-Blake.
Frei, who joined the Vodafone Warriors in 2019, was a regular for feeder club Redcliffe in the Intrust Super Cup until the latest Covid-19 lockdown put the competition on hold.
He will become the 34th player the Vodafone Warriors have used this season, the 15th to debut for the club and the sixth to play his first NRL game after Rocco Berry, Reece Walsh, Edward Kosi, Taniela Otukolo and Viliami Vailea.
In another key feature, experienced halfback Chad Townsend and hooker Wayde Egan are both on the extended bench after recovering from shoulder injuries.
Hiku is in the centres for his third match since returning from his long injury lay-off while Watene-Zelezniak has again been named on the right wing for his seventh outing since he joined the Vodafone Warriors in early July.
Whether Watene-Zelezniak makes it a double 150th celebration with Hiku is contingent on success at the NRL judiciary tonight when he fights a grade one contrary conduct offence he’s facing from Saturday’s brave 18-16 win over Cronulla Sutherland.
The Vodafone Warriors have already lost experienced front rowers Matt Lodge and Kane Evans after they took early guilty pleas on charges they picked up against the Sharks; Evans has been suspended for one match and Lodge for two.
With veteran Leeson Ah Mau cleared to return home early last month and Ben Murdoch-Masila out for the rest of the season with a foot injury, the Vodafone Warriors are left with only three established props in captain Addin Fonua-Blake, Bunty Afoa and Jamayne Taunoa-Brown.
Head coach Nathan Brown has brought Taunoa-Brown onto the interchange to replace Evans while Afoa remains on an interchange bench which also includes Kodi Nikorima and Eliesa Katoa.
Hiku (28), who made his NRL debut in 2013, has his 70th game for the Vodafone Warriors on Sunday after 60 games for Manly (2013-2015) and 20 for Penrith (2016-2017).
If Watene-Zelezniak (25) is cleared tonight he’ll reach his 150-game milestone against his former club; he started his NRL career with 106 games for Penrith from 2014-2019 before playing 37 times for the Bulldogs.
Both players have almost identical try-scoring returns across their careers, Hiku with 52 and Watene-Zelezniak scoring his 51st last Saturday.
The two Kiwi internationals have also been hugely influential in the Vodafone Warriors’ confidence-boosting consecutive wins over the Wests Tigers and Cronulla.
Hiku’s return from injury against the Tigers saw him make 132 metres from 13 runs while Watene-Zelezniak clocked up 190 from 21 carries; Hiku followed up with 196 from 17 runs against the Sharks with Watene-Zelezniak provided 155 from 12.
In both wins – the first back-to-back successes this season – the back five have been key to the performances.
Against the Tigers, Watene-Zelezniak’s 190 metres was complemented by fellow winger Marcelo Montoya (195), centre Adam Pompey (124) and fullback Reece Walsh (116).
Every one of the back five topped 100 metres against Cronulla – Hiku (196), Walsh (156), Watene-Zelezniak (155), Montoya (129) and rookie Viliami Vailea (122).
Sunday’s match will have special meaning for the Vodafone Warriors playing a home game at feeder club Redcliffe’s Moreton Daily Stadium. Several of the players in this week’s side have appeared for the Redcliffe Dolphins in the Intrust Super Cup this season.
WARRIORS v CANTERBURY BANKSTOWN BULLDOGS
3.50pm (NZT), Sunday, August 15, 2021
Moreton Daily Stadium, Redcliffe
WARRIORS
1 REECE WALSH
2 DALLIN WATENE-ZELEZNIAK
3 PETA HIKU
4 ADAM POMPEY
5 MARCELO MONTOYA
6 CHANEL HARRIS-TAVITA
7 SEAN O’SULLIVAN
8 ADDIN FONUA-BLAKE (c)
9 JAZZ TEVAGA
10 JACKSON FREI
11 EUAN AITKEN
12 JOSH CURRAN
13 BAYLEY SIRONEN
Interchange:
14 KODI NIKORIMA
15 BUNTY AFOA
16 JAMAYNE TAUNOA-BROWN
17 ELIESA KATOA
18 EDWARD KOSI
20 JACK MURCHIE
21 CHAD TOWNSEND
22 WAYDE EGAN
HEAD COACH | NATHAN BROWN
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