Warriors 42
Brisbane Broncos 12
You couldn’t make it up.
Days after halfback Luke Metcalf was allowed to walk out on his contract two years early, the Warriors might just need him more than ever.
A 42-12 win over the Brisbane Broncos has ultimately been overshadowed, as Metcalf’s successor Tanah Boyd limped off Suncorp Stadium with a suspected Anterior Cruciate Ligament injury.
Boyd’s sensational form at halfback ultimately saw him backed as coach Andrew Webster’s number one No 7, and forced Metcalf to seek a release from the final two years of his contract to join the St George Illawarra Dragons.
The 25-year-old went down injured in the early minutes, and was pictured clearly upset in the Warriors changing sheds at halftime, albeit without having had any kind of scan to determine exactly what, or how serious, the injury is.
Now, the club and fans alike will wait with bated breath over Boyd, as coach Andrew Webster faces a delicate decision over his halfback for the rest of 2026.
Despite losing Boyd early, though, the Warriors put in arguably their best display of the season for their fifth win in succession, a week after returning from a bye.
Winless against the Broncos in Brisbane since 2018, the Warriors put the 2025 premiers to the sword, backed by an estimated legion of 8000 fans - after being allocated as the “home” side for the purpose of the NRL’s Magic Round - and ended the night as the dominant supporters at Suncorp.
In his first appearance of the year, Te Maire Martin was an excellent deputy at halfback, setting up two tries and scoring one of his own, while Erin Clark produced another standout showing from lock.
Dallin Watene-Zelezniak also continued his resurgence, scoring twice and running for over 200m with ball in hand.
Meanwhile, Wayde Egan was sublime from dummy half, as he anticipates a maiden State of Origin call-up for New South Wales, having been instructed to pack extra for the trip to Brisbane.
Returning captain Mitch Barnett and Jackson Ford have been given the same instruction, along with Queenslander Kurt Capewell, with squads to be announced on Monday.
Victory consolidates the Warriors’ hold of second on the ladder, ahead of the chasing Sydney Roosters, albeit with the Penrith Panthers able to extend their lead at the top if they can get past the Dragons in the weekend’s final game.
After losing Boyd, and seeing chances go begging, Watene-Zelezniak needed no second invitation to open the scoring. Having played set after set behind the Broncos’ 10m zone, Martin put his winger away in the right corner, as Watene-Zelezniak produced a trademark finish, diving and planting with millimetres to spare.
The Warriors looked to have scored a second before the break, when Jackson Ford pounced to ground a dropped ball inside the Broncos in-goal - which referee Ashley Klein awarded on-field - only for video replays to rule a knock-on against Chanel Harris-Tavita.
But the Warriors wouldn’t be held out for long, as the resulting set saw Erin Clark hold off two defenders to barge over, and push the lead to 10-0.
Having given away 10 penalties inside the first half alone, Brisbane’s ill-discipline culminated in Patrick Carrigan being sent to the sin-bin, and Egan slipping through to score the Warriors’ third.
With that numerical advantage, the Warriors added a fourth when two former Broncos combined, as Martin’s kick was grounded by Capewell.
The only Warriors blemish on the first half came from Alofiana Khan-Pereira, who was sin-binned and placed on report for a high shot on Jesse Arthars, but a 22-0 lead after 40 minutes said it all.
While the Broncos were able to break their duck in the opening minutes after the break, courtesy of Adam Reynolds, the Warriors hit back immediately.
A misplaced offload from Gehamat Shibasaki put Ali Leiataua through to score under the posts, before Egan freed Martin to add the Warriors’ sixth try, with more than half an hour remaining.
Reynolds’ second gave the Broncos hope of igniting a comeback, only for a penalty to Chanel Harris-Tavita to push the lead back to four converted tries.
For good measure, Watene-Zelezniak had his second before the end, as an intercept and 90m runaway try sent the Warriors fans home happy, even if there was no chance for a hat-trick.
The Warriors will remain on the road for another week, and travel to face the St George Illawarra Dragons in Wollongong next Saturday.
Warriors 42 (Watene-Zelezniak 2, Clark, Egan, Capewell, Leiataua, Martin tries; Tuaupiki 5, Harris-Tavita conversions; Harris-Tavita penalty)
Broncos 12 (Reynolds 2 tries; Reynolds 2 conversions)
HT: 22-0
Alex Powell is a sports journalist for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016.