NRL: Little bit of Luck for victory

Veteran lock Micheal Luck helped break the Warriors' run of four straight losses on Friday night. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Many argue sports teams manufacture their own luck. The Warriors simply have Micheal.

That was the case for the Warriors on Friday with their win over the Gold Coast. Veteran lock Luck returned from his knee injury and proved a talisman, helping break the Warriors' run of four straight losses and creating a firmer likelihood of a return to the top eight when round 18 is complete.

Luck played a pivotal role on defence with 36 tackles and directed well from the centre of the park. The 22-6 win over the bottom-placed Titans was mandatory in the Warriors' pursuit of a finals spot with just eight NRL regular season rounds remaining.

The 29-year-old must rate as one of the most valuable players in the club's 17-season history. The fact his action portrait beams down from the franchise's gym wall as a past Player of the Year is testament to that. He has been with the club six seasons. When he has played this season, they have won eight out 13 matches - and he came off injured in the 13th. Once he left the field in the 29th minute against the Tigers with the score at 4-4 (they lost 22-26), the Warriors lost three straight matches in his absence.

Luck is from a school that will always be reluctant to isolate individuals from the team and to pinpoint his absence is not the sole reason for the failure; but he is an asset. He prefers to look at what frame of mind the team is in after Friday's win.

"It puts us back in contention for the eight but all we were worried about was preparing and playing well at home. The most pleasing thing is they only scored one try and that was off a kick. We got back our record of not letting in a try during the final 20 minutes. Considering how much ball they had, that was great. I'm pleased we built on what we created a couple of weeks back against Melbourne, the best side in the competition. We defended well there [the Warriors lost 16-8] but the attack didn't click. Against the Titans, we had good shape and created opportunities which enabled Shaun Johnson to take big steps directing play against a smart opponent in Scott Prince." The Warriors' defence improved from the recent heavy final quarter concessions against the Cowboys and the Tigers. They slowed down the ruck speed, got up fast off their line after each tackle and missed few tackles at crucial moments, resulting in no line breaks. Having Simon Mannering back in the second-row assisting at defence HQ along with the busy Elijah Taylor also helped.

Luck's lack of match fitness meant he spent less than 80 minutes on the field, coming off midway through the second half, an area he needs to address with the expectation he plays entire games.

"At times I wasn't talking much; I was just sucking in wind. You lose a bit of fitness being out the last few weeks. I didn't run around until this time last week but I'm surprised at how good it's all gone, I was expecting it [the knee] to be worse and blow up after the game.

Luck hesitates when asked how much he put himself at risk of an injury recurrence. "I've played more hurt than this before. I know in my own mind how good I've got to be to play and I'm well past that."

While the knee came through fine, his scalp took another battering. At the 28-minute mark he disappeared to the blood bin and emerged wrapped in what has become a customary swath of mummy-like bandages. He suffered another cut, this time above the right eyebrow in a clash of heads with hooker Aaron Heremaia. The blood flowed again.

Sam Rapira also made a sound return after eight weeks away with knee and thumb injuries. He found the going tough with a lack of match fitness. It was a relief to captain Mannering having two of his starting regulars back, even if Rapira did start from the bench.

"Any time you have them in the side it is a good thing. They're experienced guys; sure, their first week back might've meant getting game fit but it brings a renewed confidence. Their presence lifts the side."