A halves injury crisis will see the Warriors hand development player Luke Hanson his NRL debut for Saturday’s clash with the Newcastle Knights.
Hanson will start at five-eighth, replacing Chanel Harris-Tavita, who has been ruled out after failing a head injury assessment during their 40-6 win over the Canberra Raiders.
The 22-year-old will partner Tanah Boyd, who he played alongside 11 times for the Warriors’ reserves side in the New South Wales Cup last year during their run to the State Championship title.
The Warriors have several playmakers in the casualty ward alongside Harris-Tavita, with Luke Metcalf and Jye Linnane recovering from ACL injuries, while Te Maire Martin has a broken leg.
Hanson isn’t part of the Warriors’ top 30 squad, and is on their supplementary list, which is designed to provide depth and injury cover for clubs, usually up-and-coming talent or veteran players.
The Warriors shared a video on their social media pages of the moment Hanson found out he’d be making his NRL debut.
“I want to thank Webby [Webster] and all the coaching staff for giving me this opportunity,” Hanson said.
“It means a lot to me … and I can’t wait to get out there.”
Hanson is the lesser known of the Warriors backup halves, with most of the attention going on Jett Cleary – the younger brother of Penrith Panthers star Nathan Cleary – who has been included in the extended squad as halves cover.
Hanson hails from Australia where he began playing with junior clubs Glenmore Park Brumbies and Asquith Magpies before attending prominent rugby league school St Dominic’s College.
He then came through the system at the Penrith Panthers, playing Harold Matthews Cup (Under-17s), SG Ball Cup (U19s) and Jersey Flagg (U21) before joining the Warriors ahead of the 2024 season.
Since then, he’s featured 37 times for the NSW Cup side, and started both the Warriors’ pre-season matches against the Manly Sea Eagles and Dolphins.
While Hanson primarily played five-eighth since joining the Warriors, he is capable of playing halfback and fullback.
Last year in the reserves, he featured 17 times, scoring seven tries with 18 try assists and a 96% tackle percentage.
Hanson’s inclusion is part of multiple changes to the Warriors side with Taine Tuaupiki named to start at fullback with Charnze Nicol-Klokstad also out after a head knock, while Leka Halasima replaces Kurt Capewell in the starting side.
Co-captain Mitch Barnett has been named among the reserves in the wider squad as he closes in on a return from an ACL injury.
Elsewhere, Marata Niukore, who is closing in on a deal to join the Knights in 2027, is in line for his first appearance of the season after being named on the bench.
Jackson Ford, who is leading the Dally M race after two rounds, will play his 100th NRL match.
For the Knights, they will be without Dylan Brown and Kalyn Ponga for several weeks, with both players sustaining injuries in their win over the Sea Eagles last weekend, but they do welcome back Fletcher Sharpe to their side.
Both the Warriors and Knights are unbeaten this season.
Last time the two sides met, the Warriors claimed a dramatic 20-15 win when Halasima scored a magical game-winning try as the siren sounded.
Warriors: 1. Taine Tuaupiki, 2. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, 3. Ali Leiataua, 4. Adam Pompey, 5. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, 6. Luke Hanson, 7. Tanah Boyd, 8. James Fisher-Harris, 9. Wayde Egan, 10. Jackson Ford, 11. Leka Halasima, 12. Jacob Laban, 13. Erin Clark.
Interchange: 14. Sam Healey, 15. Demitric Vaimauga, 16. Tanner Stowers-Smith, 17. Marata Niukore, 18. Morgan Gannon.
Reserves: 20. Alofiana Khan-Pereira, 21. Eddie Ieremia-Toeava, 22. Jett Cleary, 23. Mitchell Barnett.
Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.