Warriors hang on in scrappy capital slugfest

Two competition points was soothing compensation for an eyesore at the Cake Tin.

To be an NRL contender, you’ve got to be able to win ugly — that’s the glass-half-full way of looking at the Warriors’ erratic 20-18 victory over the Dolphins in an Anzac Day clash that never quite looked in their control.

Tries flowed in the first half to the tune of three apiece, the Dolphins leading by 12 at one stage before letting in consecutive four-pointers. It took Taine Tuaupiki’s lone second-half score to give the Warriors a lead they would shakily defend for the last 18 minutes.

Totals of 25 errors and 14 penalties made for a stop-start watch, with both sides guilty of failing to build pressure or momentum through their impatience and sloppiness.

The Dolphins largely had the better of the physical battle, but only enjoying 46 percent possession held them back. Meanwhile, the Warriors struggled to fully capitalise on a 9-2 line-break count.

Nevertheless, the Warriors will finish Round 8 second on the ladder with an equal-club-best 6-2 record for just the fourth time in their history. A packed house in Wellington at least added atmosphere to an occasion the quality of the football struggled to live up to.