NRL: Maloney at the heart of Warriors revival

James Maloney. Photo / Getty Images

When the votes are cast for the Warriors' player of the 2011 season, don't be surprised if the majority is for James Maloney.

On a cold, wet night when the Warriors playoffs chances warmed up considerably, all the quibbling about whether coach Ivan Cleary should stay or go were forgotten as Maloney - the little bantam rooster of this team - showed his class again. He was heavily involved in three of the Warriors' four tries and, as he has done all season, made tackles aplenty as the Warriors' defence closed ranks and became its former miserly self on Friday night.

Most will have plumped for the effervescent Kevin Locke as player of this match; or maybe skipper Simon Mannering who put in a faultless, accurate performance on defence and attack; or Feleti Mateo - the most effective and creative ball-carrier on view in this match and really coming into his own now. Elijah Taylor also did well when thrust into the centres after the early injury to Lewis Brown.

All the Warriors need now for a finals push is for Manu Vatuvei to find his pace and get closer to his best - and maybe for another penetrative player, Krisnan Inu, to convince the coaching staff that his flakiness is outweighed by his flamboyance on attack and with the high ball.

Maybe having both Inu and new halfback Shaun Johnson on the field at once is too much right now - and that is where Maloney shines. With a pugnaciousness that juts his jaw and sends him into tackles that brake much bigger blokes, and with a fine attacking and directing sense, Maloney is the real heartbeat of this side. He and Micheal Luck are the glue in this Warriors team; it was no surprise their defence stiffened in the second half with their talisman back on the job.

In the wake of the news of Cleary's departure, there have been some misguided, patriotic souls vengefully seeking for "the Aussies" to go home, but Maloney and Luck are typical examples of Cleary's efforts to balance Australian structure and efficiency with some of the creativity of New Zealand players.

It was a perfectly weighted Maloney grubber which set up the first try to Shaun Berrigan. Maloney was also involved in their second try - his passing helping to create space for Locke to send winger Bill Tupou in - and a midfield bomb under pressure saw Mateo field the ball and produce one of those slick offloads for Mannering to score.

Johnson was involved in the fourth try, to Vatuvei, when Locke rolled out a big, hook pass overhead for the big wing to score - but it was a Johnson intercept at the end of the game that perhaps contrasted the Warriors halves' particular skill sets right now.

Johnson got the intercept and belted 80m, showing pace and elusiveness that Maloney will never have. But the youngster got a bit carried away; tried to finish it rather than waiting for the cavalry; and got bundled out over the touchline. The Warriors may need a much better points for-and-against when the top eight is calculated - and Cleary would have taken efficiency over exuberance at that point.

Maloney gave him that - with his goalkicking taking him to over 100 points for the season - and it was an encouraging performance within an overall display from a team fresh from the bye that augured well for Friday's home clash with the Bulldogs.

Yes, it was the Titans who have won just four all season. Yes, there was a worrying moment of defensive slackness when Scott Prince's early-in-the-count kick gifted an easy try to William Zillman that recalled Warriors' defensive frailties of late. Yes, the Warriors are by no means card-carrying members of the Top Eight Union; yes, the centres may prove even more problematic if Brown is out of action for some time and, yes, the Cleary departure maybe still has the potential to upset.

But you'd have to say that if they can harness the Maloney spirit across the board, spiced with a bit of Johnson/Locke/Mateo creativity, then they are indeed eligible for the eight.

Warriors 22 (S. Berrigan, B. Tupou, S. Mannering, M. Vatuvei tries; J. Maloney 3 goals).

Titans 6 (W. Zillman try; S. Prince goal).

Halftime: 10-6.