League: Warriors back to their best in NRL after taming the Wests Tigers

Karl Lawton scores a try for the Warriors. Photo / Getty

The Warriors are back – and it might be time to start believing.

Going on this evidence, you can put the Anzac Day meltdown in Melbourne down as a blip, rather than an ongoing cause for concern.

The Warriors dismissed the Tigers 26-4 at Mt Smart, and are joint leaders of the NRL after nine rounds.

There is a long, long way to go, but the Warriors are building a foundation that should only get stronger.

There will be concern over Shaun Johnson, who limped off with an ankle injury and will go for scans on Sunday. Issac Luke dislocated his shoulder – but has already exhibited his powers of recovery over the last week – while Adam Blair was confident his injury (ankle) wasn't serious.

But tonight was evidence, if it is still needed, that this Warriors team are a different beast from previous seasons. After being embarrassed by the Storm, they fronted up.

"After coming off our last performance, [when] we went to Melbourne and got really beaten up…for the guys to perform like they did was really pleasing," said Warriors coach Stephen Kearney.

"The [Tigers] are a team that stays in the fight, so to make them go away we had to knock them out."

Ivan Cleary has fashioned a tenacious Tigers team – and the visitors weren't helped by a sin binning in either half – but the Warriors matched them for effort and grit, before outplaying them with skill and speed.

This was a return to what we have seen for most of this season. They ran hard, hit hard and made good decisions at the crucial times.

"We needed to go back to what we knew, and the boys showed that," said Tohu Harris.

"We still have a lot of things we can improve, and we know that."

It was a tight contest for the first 50 minutes, before the Warriors accelerated away in the second half, bringing back the razzle dazzle as the game got loose.

Replacement hooker Karl Lawton enjoyed a stunning debut with two opportunist tries late in the second half, showing his verve and confidence from the outset.

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck had another outstanding game, while the pack overshadowed their opposites, with Harris enjoying a strong return.

The Tigers had won the last four encounters between their two teams, and the spectre of Cleary still seems to haunt Mt Smart. He had the knack of toppling Warriors teams as Penrith coach, and continued that last year after he arrived at Leichhardt.

The Warriors opened the scoring through that route, with David Fusitu'a diving over in the 12th minute.

Soon afterwards the Tigers went down to 12 men and the home side ramped up the pressure.

James Gavet earned two penalties and from the second, the Warriors extended their lead, with Ken Maumalo cantering over off a pinpoint Blake Green pass after 27 minutes.

Then the home side lost a little focus in the 10 minutes before halftime, letting the Tigers back into the game and Mahe Fonua's 32nd minute try was just reward.

The Warriors started the second half with renewed energy, and their relentless pressure saw another Tigers player sent to the sin bin, with Elijah Taylor punished for repeated infringements.

But the Warriors couldn't make hay immediately, before Johnson's moment of magic. The halfback sharp thinking to run the ball on the last tackle, allied with Peta Hiku's skillful flick and Fusitua's composure, made for one of the most memorable tries this year.

That took the bite out of the Tigers, before Lawton's stunning late cameo sealed the result.

Warriors 26 (D Fusitu'a, K Maumalo, S Johnson, K Lawton 2 tries; S Johnson 2 cons, pen)
Tigers 4 (M Fonua try)
Halftime: 12-4