TWL RD 23: KINGZ CONTAINER CREW WARRIORS PLAYER RATINGS
The Warriors’ freefall continued courtesy of a 32-14 loss to Canterbury Bulldogs on a wet and forgettable Saturday night at Accor Stadium.
The visitors’ early resistance fell away following a highly dubious opening try to Viliame Kikau, with the Bulldogs stripping both Warriors edges as wingers Jethro Rinakama and Enari Tuala scored for a 20-2 halftime lead – virtually unassailable in the conditions and with limited possession, platform and impetus.
A meandering second half finished two tries apiece as Sam Healey got the Warriors on the board with an opportunist effort in the 54th minute and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck jagged an intercept in the dying minutes. The Warriors actually completed at a decent 83 percent, but they had just 44 percent of the pill and made zero line-breaks to Canterbury’s six. The less said about the officiating the better, with Adam Gee apparently responding ‘How high?’ every time Stephen Crichton said ‘Jump’.
Meanwhile, Andrew Webster’s selections and strategy came under scrutiny.
Dropping Tanah Boyd seemed harsh and, given the weather forecast, shortsighted. It may have been exacerbated by Te Maire Martin’s early HIA exit, but the veteran utility was never likely to be a better fit in the slop and Chanel Harris-Tavita had an 80-minute nightmare with the boot. Equally confusing was the decision to start NSW Cup middle Freddy Lussick at hooker and leave him there until the 48th minute; Healey took just six minutes to produce the team’s first try.
Five losses in seven games has finally dumped the Warriors out of the top four for the first time since Round 6, leapfrogged by streaking Penrith – though Brisbane’s and Cronulla’s Round 23 saw them avoid plummetting to seventh.
With eighth (Dolphins) and ninth (Roosters) only four points in arrears and carrying a poor points differential, the Warriors’ finals hopes are on tenterhooks ahead of next Friday’s crunch home game against the suddenly in-form Dragons, who are still a mathematical Top 8 chance.
It’s a soggy and sorry Sunday morning edition of the Kingz Container Crew player ratings from your tired and stroppy scribe.
1 TAINE TUAUPIKI: An awful night to be a fullback in a team getting steamrolled, but the diminutive livewire was one of the few Warriors to impress. Never stopped probing and was super safe at the back. Finished with 110 metres on 15 runs. 6.5
2 DALLIN WATENE-ZELEZNIAK: Not his worst of 2025 by any stretch and was solid on the carry with 12 runs for 91 metres, but a glaring play-the-ball blunder in the first half inside the Warriors’ 20 proved costly. 5
3 ADAM POMPEY: Terrible defensive read in Rinakama’s try and ordinary effort as Crichton scored. Nine runs for 58 metres. Yep, this is our number one centre. 4
4 CHARNZE NICOLL-KLOKSTAD: Retrenched to five-eighth after 23 minutes in obviously less than ideal circumstances in difficult conditions, but four runs for 19 metres and just nine passes was a glaringly anonymous performance for a senior leader in a team desperate for some sort of impetus. 4
5 ROGER TUIVASA-SHECK: Led the team by some margin again with a game-high 156 metres from 16 runs and grabbed a late intercept try, but on the whole probably had his poorest game in a great season. Two errors included a cold drop of a high ball under no pressure, while opposite number Tuala bagged a double. 5.5
6 CHANEL HARRIS-TAVITA: What was always going to be a tricky night got a lot harder following Martin’s exit with CHT having to shoulder virtually the entire kicking and playmaking load…but his long and short kicking game was atrocious by any measure and he couldn’t get anything going on attack. 4
14 TE MAIRE MARTIN: Rewarded for some fine gap-filling form with the halfback spot but made little impression on the game before knocking himself out of it with a mistimed tackle. Automatically ruled out of next week. 4
23 JAMES FISHER-HARRIS: Great to get the skipper back late and gave it everything, but ultimately an unhappy night. Ten runs for 76 metres and 21 tackles, along with a handling error, a ruck infringement and a bogus penalty that should’ve earned Crichton an Oscar and Gee a demotion. 5
18 FREDDY LUSSICK: Went from 18th man to starting hooker, playing the first 47 minutes at dummy-half and a few minutes in the middle during the latter stages. Didn’t do much wrong, though had a handling error and a penalty, and is undeniably limited. Racked up 35 tackles with five misses. 4.5
10 JACKSON FORD: Came up with some huge ball-and-all tackles during the first half among 33 stops for the match, though missed eight. Just 48 metres on eight runs, plus a penalty and two ruck infringements. 5
8 MARATA NIUKORE: Reverted to the second-row with JFH back and was barely sighted, making five runs for 31 metres and making 23 tackles with seven misses. Despite the odd solid performance (increasingly when he plays in the middle), there’s no way the well-paid veteran is providing value in a squad brimming with talented, gut-busting tyros ready for permanent first-grade opportunities. 4
12 KURT CAPEWELL: An all-too-familiar move to the centres following Martin’s exit and had his own HIA hiatus, which he passed. Just two runs, along with 21 tackles. 4.5
13 ERIN CLARK: Easily the Warriors’ most impactful forward with the ball in hand with 110 metres (51 post-contact) on 12 carries with two tackle-breaks. Worked hard on the other side of the ball with 35 tackles. 6.5
9 SAM HEALEY: Rode the pine until seven minutes into the second half and soon afterwards bagged the Warriors’ first – and his maiden NRL – try with a kick-and-chase effort. Fortuitous as it may have been, Healey just makes things happen. Racked up 20 tackles in just 32 minutes and they looked a better team with him at dummy-half. 6
11 LEKA HALASIMA: A disjointed night including a switch back to the bench, coming into the action early and copping a painful head clash within minutes, and a stint at centre. Six runs for 39 metres and nine tackles. 5
16 DEMETRIC VAIMAUGA: Toiled for a team-high 37 tackles in a 54-minute shift, a big bump in playing time. Only five runs for 35 metres but overall one of the Warriors’ better performers. 6
17 TANNER STOWERS-SMITH: Another to get a huge increase in playing minutes and was the Warriors’ busiest middle with 14 runs for 95 metres and 25 tackles in 46 minutes. One handling error. No frills but rock-solid. 6.5
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