KEY POINTS:
What happens today against the Storm will determine whether the season has been successful for the Warriors.
It doesn't matter that they finished in the top eight. Expectations were that with the quality within the team, they should have finished in the top four.
That's why success for
this club is a win against the Storm on their home ground and moving to the next playoff game.
Others will differ on my assessment but it has been a frustrating season as they have performed below their potential.
Before the NRL kicked off, the Warriors would have been happy enough to make the top eight but disappointed they didn't finish higher on the table.
Teams that view success as making the playoffs usually weren't in them the previous season.
The Warriors were. They were fourth in 2007 and a real chance for the premiership.
Because of that, their goal would have been to at least replicate that in 2008 because you simply don't lower targets unless you're crippled with major personnel losses.
Of course, the Warriors didn't lose a lot of players and actually improved their squad with the recruitment of Brent Tate.
The complexion of their season changed tremendously with the serious knee injury to fullback Wade McKinnon on the eve of the NRL's kickoff and it got worse with the hamstring injury to captain Steve Price.
After 15 rounds, the Warriors looked out of it. They had only five wins and it didn't look good, despite Price returning from injury. It looked like the top eight was only a remote possibility, not a hopeful one.
Fans have been put through an incredible rollercoaster ride of a season but excitement has only come in the back end of the season, with a run of eight wins in 10 matches, including victories over the Storm, Sharks and Broncos. Horrible losses to the Rabbitohs and Dragons dented enthusiasm.
The Warriors' eighth placing should be looked at in context of what minor premiers the Melbourne Storm achieved. They finished on 38 points after 17 wins and 7 losses.
The Sea Eagles and Sharks also finished with 38 points, while the Raiders, Dragons and Warriors completed the top eight with 30 points.
This highlights just how tough this competition has become.
In previous years, the top team finished anywhere between 42 and 48 points. The eighth-placed club usually scraped in with 28 and sometimes even 24 points but this year, 13 teams still had a chance to crack a top-eight spot with two rounds to go.
Given where the Warriors have come from since round 15, a win will give them a sense of satisfaction that they have achieved. It will also mean they are still there next week.