NRL: Friend could put stars out

Nathan Friend is expected to sign for the Warriors. Photo / Getty Images

The likely signing of Nathan Friend for the Warriors next year will put pressure on four of the club's hookers coming off contract at the end of the season.

Friend's signing on a three-year deal could be announced as early as tomorrow, with the 30-year-old having already indicated to the Titans he would be leaving at the end of the season. The Warriors have reportedly tabled a three-year deal worth $1 million which would price Gold Coast (who offered him $700,000) and most other suitors out of the market.

Friend is seen by the Warriors as one of the best hookers in the competition. He was Titans' Player of the Year in 2009 and would provide some class in a crucial position, although it must be hoped his best years are not behind him. The Warriors have had good hookers in recent times without having top-drawer ones and clearly believe Friend will be just that.

The Warriors' recruitment policy is to sign locals and supplement them with quality from the Australian market and Friend's price tag would put him in that bracket. They might also be on the lookout for a centre, where they are short of depth this season.

Friend's arrival will put Aaron Heremaia, Shaun Berrigan and Alehana Mara on notice, as well as utility Lance Hohaia, who started on the interchange bench last night against the Roosters.

All four are off contract at the end of the season, although the club have options for next year on all of them. Berrigan automatically receives an extension if he plays 20 NRL games this season and he has appeared in all five games to date.

The 32-year-old former Australian international was signed as a utility who could play hooker, centre and in the halves. He has proved to be a handy acquisition but has had limited opportunities in the No 9 jersey, which appears to be his best position. Last night he played at centre because of the season-ending injury to Jerome Ropati and poor form of Joel Moon.

Heremaia has largely played as the starting hooker but has not yet recaptured his form of 2010 that earned a call up to the Kiwis for last year's Anzac Test. Mara hasn't been seen this season but impressed in his three outings in 2010 and at 21 could be a player worth investing in.

Hohaia is an interesting case. The 28-year-old is in his 10th season at the club and has proved one of the most versatile. He has played fullback (44 games), five-eighth (44), interchange (43), centre (15), hooker (11) and halfback (10) and often got the club out of a tight squeeze. But his utility value means he has not established himself as a top-class player in any of those positions.

Hohaia has done a great job at fullback over the last three years - good enough to play for the Kiwis there - but it was hard to see him reclaiming the Warriors' spot from Glen Fisiiahi until the young fullback injured his ankle late in the first half.

Fisiiahi is a rare talent and a player who needs to be given time to develop. He might make a few errors as he learns about the NRL, like he did in his debut against the Eels last month, but he can also provide a genuine spark from the back like his two-try effort in last week's defeat of the Sharks.

He has pace and a knack of popping up on a team-mate's shoulder ready for the offload - qualities that made Wade McKinnon so dangerous in his first season with the Warriors.

Hohaia started from the bench last night and slotted into hooker before moving back to fullback when Fisiiahi went off. He had originally been earmarked to play for the Vulcans but coach Ivan Cleary had decided by Wednesday Hohaia was a better option on the bench than winger Kevin Locke. Depending on Fisiiahi's fitness, it's not inconceivable it's a role he will fill more often this season because he is suited to dummy-half.

Hohaia looks best when he has the ball in his hands, when he's involved in the game and sniping in and around the fringes. He's looked less assured, however, in the halves when he's charged with driving a team around the park. The Warriors clearly have problems at centre but Hohaia's lack of size counts against him there.

The club can't keep Hohaia, Berrigan, Heremaia and Mara and will need to make some tough decisions later in the season.

"We have got an open mind with all of the guys coming off contract at the club," Warriors chief executive Wayne Scurrah said. "Nothing has been determined on any of those guys. All of them are still in the reckoning for those options or even extended contracts beyond that."