A dejected Tohu Harris. Photo / Matt Roberts / NRL Photos
A dejected Tohu Harris. Photo / Matt Roberts / NRL Photos
Michael Burgess in Brisbane
Warriors winger Dallin Watene-Zelezniak admits the manner of the preliminary final defeat to the Broncos is going to hurt for months.
After capturing the imagination with their achievements in 2023 – with the return to the NRL’s top four and a historic home playoff win overNewcastle – the Warriors couldn’t provide a final flourish, falling 42-12 to Brisbane on Saturday night.
Considering the build up to the match, which had almost stopped the nation, the performance was an anti-climax, as the Warriors shipped seven tries, overwhelmed through the ruck and punished out wide, with Reece Walsh electric against his former club.
The Warriors had been significant underdogs against Brisbane – given their roster – but the team had much higher expectations.
“It just sucks, so much hard work in the pre-season, during the year and then to fall short like that, not play our game, it’s pretty disappointing,” said Watene-Zelezniak.
While there was an underlying sentiment of pride from the Warriors supporters after the game, given their turnaround this year, the players were struggling to deal with the emphatic loss.
“It is going to sting all pre-season, all off season,” admitted Watene-Zelezniak. “You just care so much and you work so hard, it’s hard to put into words. We took some massive strides this year, to get to where we are now.”
Jordan Riki celebrates a try. Matt Roberts / NRL Photos
“That’s the disappointing thing because we have got it in us, when we play our footy on our day and Saturday wasn’t us. I really appreciate all the love and support I have got this year, it has really helped me but at the moment it feels like we let down, not only us but we let all of New Zealand. That is how I’m feeling.”
As the Broncos loudly partied with supporters, families and sponsors down the corridor, the Warriors dressing room was a much more subdued affair. Players had a quiet beer with teammates and the coaching staff, before the delegation headed back to their inner city hotel.
Like many of his teammates, Watene-Zelezniak had a mixed night. He offered the usual physical intensity in yardage and anticipated a Walsh pass to snaffle a long range intercept, one of two touchdowns on Saturday that took his season tally to 24, a new club record.
But he was part of a right edge that was regularly punctured, as they failed to get their timing and structure right defensively and he got caught out for a couple of Brisbane tries.
“We did some work on what to expect, it happened so fast and I got the read right [for the intercept],” said Watene Zelezniak. “But there was a few times where defensively we weren’t clicking as an edge, you just want to forget it. Offloads killed us and every time you turned around they would be in front of you. It’s hard to get your processes right when they are playing so fast, we usually do handle that kind of stuff but they were in our face a lot.”
It was a remarkably open game, with seven tries alone in the first half. The Warriors started well and led 8-6 towards the end of the first quarter, before Brisbane’s three-try burst – in just seven minutes, which broke the game open.
The visitors responded again with their third try, to trail 24-12 at halftime (four tries to three), before the Broncos broke away again in the second half. The home side managed 15 offloads in the first half alone and their second-phase play created havoc for most of the night.
“We were in the fight but too many offloads, that really killed us, especially around the ruck and then you bring in the likes of Reece Walsh and Ezra Mann,” added interchange forward Dylan Walker. “They got a few away and made us pay for it. It was us mentally switching off and not worrying about the job.”
Like Watene-Zelezniak, Walker was struggling to put the season in the context in the immediate aftermath of defeat.
“It hurts at the moment,” said Walker. “We know it’s a step in the right direction moving forward but when you come to a prelim final you want to give yourself a chance in the game. I guess coming into next year we want to keep that sustained success. I’m a big believer that things happen for a reason.”
The Warriors were due to arrive back in Auckland around 5pm New Zealand time on Sunday.
