Warriors subject Sticky's boys to slippery second-half slaughter

It was all one-way traffic at Mount Smart after a tense opening 40 minutes in the wet.

Friday the 13th’s festivities kicked off in nightmare fashion for the Warriors: Kurt Capewell ruled out with a calf strain in the warm-up; a Canberra try inside five minutes; and Chanel Harris-Tavita ruled out for the game by a category one concussion not long after.

The V energy drink company handing out hundreds of lime green ponchos to the soaked punters further suggested it wasn’t going to be the home side’s evening.

But after a 6-all halftime deadlock, the night ended with Warriors CEO Cameron George dishing out mana waves and crybaby signs at the Raiders, who had leaked six unanswered tries in the second half to sink to a 40-6 defeat.

Halfback Tanah Boyd called the tune for the second week in a row, Taine Tuaupiki enjoyed a fabulous night as an unexpected fullback fill-in, and the Warriors’ super-fit, steely forward pack gained an emphatic points decision over another much-vaunted rival engine-room.