Warriors v Eels: Key takeaways as Andrew Webster’s men sit second heading into bye round

THE FACTS

The Warriors will head into their first bye of the season with a smile on their faces after a comfortable 36-14 win over the Eels. Ben Francis looks at the five big takeaways from the win which solidifies their spot in second place in the NRL standings.

The bye has come at the right time

After equalling their best-ever start to a season with a 7-2 record - matching last year’s mark - the Warriors head into their first of three byes in a strong position, and the timing could hardly be better.

Nine rounds in, nine of the 25 players used so far (Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Tanah Boyd, James Fisher-Harris, Jackson Ford, Leka Halasima, Wayde Egan, Sam Healey and Erin Clark) have featured in every game.

Another nine (Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Ali Leiataua, Chanel Harris-Tavita, Luke Metcalf, Mitch Barnett, Tanner Stowers-Smith, Marata Niukore, Kurt Capewell and Morgan Gannon) have already spent at least a week on the sidelines, while three more members of the top-30 squad (Te Maire Martin, Rocco Berry and Jye Linnane) had not featured at all before this weekend. Martin, however, did make his return through reserve grade.

The good news for Andrew Webster is that most of those currently sidelined are expected back in a fortnight, easing the load and creating some welcome selection headaches.

That makes this bye especially valuable. It offers a much-needed chance to freshen up key players, none more so than Jackson Ford, who has logged 670 of a possible 720 minutes, an enormous workload for a middle forward in the modern game.

There were signs fatigue was beginning to creep in elsewhere, too. Hooker Egan looked below his usual sharp standards against the Eels before leaving with a head knock, while second-rower Halasima has shown signs of a second-year dip with a string of uncharacteristic performances.

For Halasima, it could simply be about having a reduced role for a few weeks, something seen last season where Webster said it was about quality over quantity for the 20-year-old.

Webster also acknowledged the importance of the bye post-match, particularly with a crucial stretch of the season looming on the other side. More on that shortly.

Fisher-Harris grows in captaincy role

While forwards Ford and Clark have grabbed the headlines with their blistering starts to the season, co-captain James Fisher-Harris has quietly emerged as one of the Warriors’ most important players.

The 30-year-old arrived at the club last year after nine seasons with the Penrith Panthers, where he established himself as one of the NRL’s premier front rowers. By those lofty standards, however, his first campaign in Auckland fell short of expectations.

Injuries restricted him to 19 appearances, which played its part, as did the inevitable comparisons that came with replacing Addin Fonua-Blake – a very different style of prop with a very different influence on a game.

But perhaps the biggest factor was the weight of expectation that came with joining a new club and immediately stepping into the captaincy alongside Mitch Barnett.

Before being named co-captain, Fisher-Harris - the Kiwis skipper - admitted leadership was something he wanted to earn as he learned what it meant to be a Warrior.

Now, with that first season behind him, he is thriving. The adjustment period is over, the burden has eased, and his output has returned to levels that closely mirror the standards he set during Penrith’s run of four straight premierships.

Has speed been the missing ingredient?

The emergence of new recruit Alofiana Khan-Pereira and his genuine sprinter’s speed has unlocked a new attacking dimension for the Warriors and it is one they have badly needed.

When the Warriors lost Metcalf for the season last year, they lost more than just their chief playmaker. They lost their only genuine speed threat. It did not take long for the campaign to unravel as their attack lost its spark, became predictable and drifted into one-dimensional territory.

Khan-Pereira has changed that. Widely regarded as one of the fastest players in the NRL, the winger’s pace was on full display against the Eels, none more so than with his opening try. Given barely any room near the sideline, he still managed to burn around Brian Kelly with ease and score in the corner – a try most other wingers wouldn’t have been able to finish.

He now has six tries in five appearances for the Warriors and 59 in 58 games across his NRL career.

For years, the Warriors have built their wing play around power and yardage, but often lacked the sort of raw speed that can break a game open in an instant.

Khan-Pereira offers a genuine point of difference, and his arrival has added a layer of unpredictability that has helped elevate the Warriors’ attack, although he is still shaky on defence, but improving.

If you are curious, Webster has said Metcalf and Linnane are the next two fastest players at the Warriors.

Some of the Warriors’ young forwards are showing great speed, with reserve hooker Healey’s pace out of dummy-half becoming an increasingly valuable weapon, while Demitric Vaimauga looked like Iafeta Paleaaesina with his carries off the back fence.

Webster’s change of tone over selection headaches

A common criticism of Andrew Webster in previous seasons was that he could be loyal to a fault with his players.

At times, that was reflected in selections, with out-of-form players retaining their spots, while others would be thrust straight back in after injury regardless of how well their replacements had performed.

However, there appears to have been a shift in approach this year.

Webster offered a firm endorsement of his current halves pairing when asked how Luke Metcalf – last year’s Dally M frontrunner before his injury – fits back into the picture.

“I’m not making any changes to them,” Webster said. “They deserve to stay there and they’ve done a good job.

”We’re just picking the team on form. Luke’s done nothing wrong. He’s a good player and if the opportunity comes, he’ll take it. But right now this is the best thing for the team.“

It was a notable stance, given that in previous seasons Metcalf would have slotted straight back in because of his value to the Warriors. Instead, he was an unused interchange player in the win over the Eels.

Neither Boyd nor Harris-Tavita have given Webster any reason to change course; however, the pair have formed a strong and complementary partnership, winning all six games they have started together this season.

The Warriors’ two losses both came with Metcalf in the starting line-up.

As it stands, Metcalf may be forced to bide his time on the bench, a situation that could test patience after re-signing with the club in November.

Boyd and Harris-Tavita are both off contract at season’s end, although reports suggest extension talks are already underway with the former.

Some big selection calls will be on the cards coming up, with Nicoll-Klokstad to come under consideration to reclaim the fullback role from Taine Tuaupiki, who has impressed over the past fortnight, while the returns of Barnett, Niukore and Leiataua will force further decisions after their injury interruptions.

Make-or-break May

In golf, “moving day” refers to the third round, when players make their push up the leaderboard and shape the outcome of the tournament.

For the Warriors, May effectively becomes an entire moving month, a challenging stretch that will reveal where they truly sit among the NRL’s contenders.

It begins with a blockbuster in Brisbane against the defending champion Broncos in Magic Round on May 17. It is classified as a “home” match for the Warriors which is diabolical.

The two sides have produced some classic encounters over the years, although the last time the Warriors played the Broncos in Brisbane, it was a day to forget.

They then face the winless Dragons in Sydney on May 23. On paper, it looks like a match they should win comfortably, but the timing adds intrigue just five days out from the opening State of Origin clash.

That could mean disruption, with players such as Capewell, Barnett and potentially Ford in contention for representative duty.

To round out the month, they host the ladder-leading Panthers on May 31, another major test against the benchmark of the competition.

It is a demanding three-game stretch, all in Australia, each with its own challenges. Any slip-ups could quickly derail momentum.

And it does not get much easier beyond that. After Penrith, the Warriors head into their second bye of the season before returning to face the Sharks, a side that has already beaten them this year.

While no premiership is won in May, it is a defining month in the context of the season. For the Warriors, anything less than two wins from three would likely be viewed as a fail.

Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.