Minor premiership, regular season records beckon
Hanson’s enters field goal folklore
Taine Tuau-kicky
CHT’s try streak
20 of the best for collared DWZ
Linnane chatter
Entering NRLW record books for the wrong reasons
The Warriors racked up their highest score of the season — and conceded their third-highest tally of 2026 — in a thrilling 45-26 victory over South Sydney Rabbitohs at Accor Stadium on Saturday night.
After scoring a season-best 26 first-half points, the Warriors led 32-8 before being reeled back to 32-26. But a strong finish got the job done, while a late Luke Hanson field goal lifted the club to the top of the NRL table.
Despite the helter skelter nature of the contest, the Warriors completed at an outstanding 89 percent (34/38) to the Rabbitohs’ 77 percent (27/35). The visitors made 1,611 metres to Souths’ 1,438 — with Mitch Barnett piling up a game-high 183 — and narrowly led the post-contact metres (481 to 406) and average set distance (42.41 to 41.1) counts.
Souths made nine line-breaks to the Warriors’ eight, while the Warriors broke 32 tackles and the Rabbitohs 30. The Warriors won the penalty count 4-1 but again finished on the wrong side of the set restarts, with the Rabbitohs awarded five and giving away three.
Giltinan by association
The Warriors extended their club record points differential to +295, a solitary point more than Penrith. Sydney Roosters’ (+162) shock loss to Wests Tigers created a three-way logjam on top of the NRL ladder, with the Warriors finishing the weekend in first place for just the sixth time in the club’s history.
Wins in their remaining games against Newcastle and Manly — both at home — will likely see the Warriors collect the J.J. Giltinan Shield as minor premiers for just the second time. They finished top of the table in 2002…only after runaway leaders the Bulldogs were docked 37 competition points for flagrant salary cap breaches.
The Warriors would only need to win their remaining matches by a bigger collective margin than the Panthers win theirs against the Bulldogs and Tigers to earn top spot.
A few more regular season records beckon for the Warriors over the next fortnight:
Two more wins will see the Warriors eclipse the 2002 team’s record of 17 regular season victories.
The Warriors only need to score 38 more points to break the 2002 combination’s record for most points in a regular season (688).
The Warriors need seven more tries to pass the club record set in 2002 of 119 regular season tries.
If the Warriors can restrict the Knights and Sea Eagles to less than 37 points combined, they will set a new mark for least points conceded in a regular season. The 2011 side currently holds the record with 393.
The least tries conceded by a Warriors team in a regular season is 70 in 1997 (in only 18 games); they have leaked just 63 tries so far in 2026.
Hanson plays the field goal
Luke Hanson’s last-second field goal that catapulted the Warriors to the top of the NRL ladder saw the second-gamer become only the 17th player to land a one-pointer for the club in first grade.
Twelve of the other 16 have landed just the one field goal, with Shaun Johnson (17), Stacey Jones (14), James Maloney (6) and Gene Ngamu (3) the Warriors’ only multiple field goal kickers.
Hanson’s was the first field goal by a Warriors player since Luke Metcalf proved the difference in a 15-14 defeat of St George Illawarra in Round 12 last year.
