Warriors coach Andrew Webster has received the highest possible praise from his captain, with Tohu Harris seeing similarities with legendary Melbourne Storm mentor Craig Bellamy.
In his first season as head coach, the NRL rookie has performed a minor miracle at the Auckland club, taking them back to the top four for the first time since 2007. But it hasn’t been random, by chance or beginners’ luck. Webster seems a natural but it is a product of numerous factors, borne from a long apprenticeship in the lower grades and in unfashionable environments.
And it has come to fruition spectacularly at the Warriors, guiding them to a 16-8 regular season record, which has set up Saturday’s qualifying final match against Minor Premiers Penrith (6.05pm).
Harris, who has been in the NRL for more than a decade, isn’t naturally effusive but has been thoroughly impressed.
“He has struck a really good balance,” said Harris. “He knows how to have fun and this has been a fun year. Every single week there are different things happening, we are enjoying the moments but then he knows when to be serious and pull us into line and to tell us when it is time to get the work done.”
Perhaps most impressively, Webster has managed to identify - and then implement - the ideal game style for the group, off the back of a single pre-season and with numerous new recruits. In that aspect, Harris sees early parallels with the incomparable Bellamy, who has presided over the Storm empire since 2003. Before coming to the Warriors in 2018, Harris spent five seasons in Melbourne, reaching two Grand Finals.
“[Andrew] is really good at teaching,” said Harris. “He has had to bring in a different structure, a different system and alongside the other coaches, they have done a really good job of teaching us and getting us to action it.
“I do see a lot of Craig in him but he is probably a bit more fun, he laughs a bit more than Craig but the intensity is there when it is needed, and he is really good at reaching the room.”
The Warriors will need all those attributes - and more - as they prepare to take on the two-time defending champions in their own backyard. However, there is a quiet confidence.
“If we want to win this competition, we have to go through these guys,” said Harris. “Everything about that challenge just excites me.”
Harris is also embracing the underdogs tag, against a team that have become the benchmark in the NRL. Penrith have reached the last three Grand Finals and seem to go to another level in September, while collectively the Warriors have limited big-match experience.
“It’s nothing different,” said Harris. “I’m not even sure we were meant to make the top eight. We have worked hard and always believed in ourselves, right from the beginning, even from the phone calls before Webby had the job, the belief that he put in us as players, it’s been there right from the beginning.”
Harris also allayed concerns over his back, after speculation over the extent of the injury. He has felt “general soreness or tightness” over the past few weeks but missing last Saturday’s match “did wonders” and he has also sat out some recent contact sessions.
“I’m going to be fine,” said Harris.
Webster has two plans on how Harris will be used, depending on how the game goes but didn’t offer further details. Settling on a 17 had been difficult, with virtually everyone available, and some had been unlucky to miss out. Getting the twin punch of the “bald brothers” back again (Jazz Tevaga and Dylan Walker) was a priority, along with 80-minute performers, while he hinted that Bunty Afoa, who has been demoted to the extended bench, could yet play a role.
While there are all kinds of strategies and theories over what might unfold, the key will be matching the physical intensity that Penrith bring to the contest, on both sides of the ball, in a playoff match.
“They’re going to feel a physical battle that is different,” said Webster. “The collisions are going to be different, that’s always the difference in finals. It’s who can withstand for the longest and not break first. It’s easy for me to say, I’m not the one doing it, but the boys know they’re going to face that and we’ve actually got a lot more guys who have played finals for previous clubs than what people think.”
Michael Burgess has been a sports journalist since 2005, winning several national awards and covering Olympics, Fifa World Cups and America’s Cup campaigns. He has reported on the Warriors and NRL for more than a decade.