By PETER JESSUP
The Warriors and the Sharks will be feeling the same heat when they meet tonight.
Both are suffering from patchy form and too many losses, and fans and managements are not happy.At both clubs, the focus is on the halfbacks - and neither is shirking it.
Brett Kimmorley has been there before. Two seasons ago he was brought into the Northern Eagles as saviour, only for the plan to stumble and crumble.
Then last season the Sharks had seven consecutive losses as they adjusted to coach Chris Anderson's game-plan. Cronulla looked to have turned the corner when Kimmorley scored three tries as they beat the Knights a fortnight ago.
But last weekend they snatched defeat from the jaws of victory to give Canberra a 20-14 win.
"There's no feeling of extra pressure for me," Kimmorley, the Sharks' playmaker and captain, said. "It's the game I enjoy playing. If it's not good enough, so what? I enjoy testing myself in these situations."
He also enjoys testing himself against the best and readily places Warriors halfback Stacey Jones in that category.
"He's very, very talented, and extremely dangerous, especially from second-phase play.
"We know what Stacey can do - stopping him is another thing. You know he's going to score points or set someone up to score - it's a matter of limiting how many times he can do it."
Kimmorley says the Sharks are a better side than the way they have been playing suggests, and he isn't worried about the team's youth and inexperience.
The bad start to the season shook the team, Kimmorley says, as did the departure of long-serving club juniors Nick Graham and Dean Treister who have been released to go to England.
But they started playing better football about a month ago, and he is confident the wins will come.
"It's a tougher competition this season. There are no teams you can take lightly, and you have to be on your game every weekend."
The 27-year-old reconnected with Australian coach Chris Anderson last season. The pair were grand final winners with the Melbourne Storm in 1999.
Kimmorley then had an unhappy year with the Northern Eagles and left two years of a A$2 million deal with them behind to go back to the man who puts complete faith in him to run the game.
Anderson upset everyone by making him captain over star David Peachey. Kimmorley has a simple recipe for success.
"I just have to get on and achieve, and so does the team. I know I've got to lift, we all have to believe in ourselves that we can. Both teams are going to want this game desperately, both sides need it."
Kimmorley and Jones have remarkably similar stature and history, and are of equal importance to their teams. The only difference is that the Sharks are Kimmorley's fifth club and Jones has seen the good and bad times at one.
The Warriors' most loyal servant agrees his team-mates are frustrated at playing reasonably well but not winning. He agrees with Kimmorley's comment about strength of opponents.
"Penrith and Canberra are teams we used to have the wood on, but they're playing really good football now."
He says the Warriors are facing big expectations this year.
"Daniel [coach Anderson] warned us we would have bad times, that we couldn't always be winners and this is that time. But we're not in despair - we just need to click and everyone feels it's close."
He doesn't feel any extra pressure to perform, and he doesn't dwell on the talkback.
"There is always pressure to perform. When things aren't going right we have to keep to ourselves and not worry too much about what everyone else says."
Like Kimmorley, he is looking forward to the clash in the halves.
"I always enjoy playing Brett. He'll have a high involvement in the game, and you just try to limit what he does."
Jones says the Warriors have had difficulty adjusting to this year's "rushing defence", initiated by the Roosters.
"We're still trying to find the best ways for us to attack against it. And every week there's adjustments by each team - if you play the same style all the time, people start to read you."
This week he feels Motu Tony will offer something more and he is looking forward to delegating some responsibility for the attack.
In the background to this game is the first Kiwis-Kangaroos test in July and the second, scheduled for October.The coaching Andersons meet again in Cronulla the weekend before the July 25 game in Sydney. That, says Kimmorley, "adds some edge" to the game.
And if Newcastle's Andrew Johns were to be injured, Kimmorley would be Australian halfback. He and Jones do not see the test as hanging over their performances at Ericsson Stadium tonight.
"If the team goes well the rep thing takes care of itself," says Kimmorley.
Jones: "They'll be looking for the two points, the same as we are - test thoughts are non-existent."
They won't be once tonight's result is known. And one Anderson or the other will be up one-nil.
Teams:
New Zealand Warriors: Brent Webb, Henry Fa'afili, Vince Anderson, Vince Mellars, Francis Meli, Motu Tony, Stacey Jones, Jerry Seuseu, Monty Betham (c), Mark Tookey, Logan Swann, Wairangi Koopu, Sione Faumuina; interchange Justin Murphy, Iafeta Palea'aesina, Karl Te Mata, Richard Villasanti.
Cronulla Sharks: David Peachey, Laloa Milford, Andrew Emelio, Jarad Anderson, Matthew Reick, Matt Hilder, Brett Kimmorley (c), Chris Beattie, Pat Gibson, Danny Nutley, Sam Isemonger, Greg Bickerstaff, Greg Bird; interchange Dean Bosnich, Daniel Dumas, Michael Sullivan, Jye Mullane.
* TV: Live on Sky 1, 7.30pm. Referee: Sean Hampstead.
NRL points table and fixtures
Head to head:
BRETT KIMMORLEY
Born: Sept 15, 1976, in Newcastle
Height: 172cm
Weight: 80kg
Previous clubs: Knights 1995/96, Hunter Mariners 1997, Storm 1998/2000, Northern Eagles 2001.
State of Origin: Five games for NSW.
Tests: Eight, 1999-2002.
NRL: 159 games since debut 1995.
Married: To Sharnie, two daughters Maddi and Mia Grace.
Favourite pastime: Golf.
STACEY JONES
Born: May 7, 1976, in Auckland.
Height: 171cm
Weight: 82kg.
NRL: 181 games for the Warriors since debut in 1995.
Tests: 33, 1995-2002.
Awards: Golden Boot last year as world's best player.
Married: To Natalie, two daughters Chellcey and Waiana.
Favourite pastime: Fishing.
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