Given the circumstances – being without key men Mitch Barnett and Wayde Egan – this was their best match of the season. The Warriors look like they belong in the top four, rather than just a squad riding an early wave.
This was the real deal; a statement display ahead of their bye. A crunching effort in the forwards, defensive resilience everywhere and an unyielding spirit. There was also superb game management from the halves, Luke Metcalf and Chanel Harris-Tavita.
Perhaps what was most exciting was the attacking thrust, the offloads and the willingness and intent to go wide early. After a tight first half, where Cronulla had edged the opportunities but trailed 12-10, the Warriors were dynamite, with five unanswered tries in the second half.
Young guns Demitric Vaimauga, Leka Halasima and Jacob Laban again caught the eye, while Sam Healey and Te Maire Martin didn’t put a foot wrong covering for Egan. But there were standouts across the park, from Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad at the back to James Fisher-Harris and Erin Clark in the trenches, while Metcalf enjoyed a perfect return to his former club.
Aside from Barnett – arguably the most effective player over the last two seasons – they also lost hooker Egan to a hip problem on Friday, while Rocco Berry (hamstring) was scratched earlier in the week.
That meant Healey, son of Cronulla great Mitch Healey, made his first NRL start, with Marata Niukore a late switch to the front row. The first quarter was close to the Warriors’ best of the season. They ran with purpose, used clever angles and rolled up the field, while defending with discipline, intensity and courage.
They opened the scoring after five minutes with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak’s try, the winger leaping to take a pinpoint Metcalf chip after a Clark offload and a powerful Laban run.
After they repelled the Sharks with impressive defence – including a desperate Kurt Capewell try-saver on Braydon Trindall – the Warriors extended their lead. Harris-Tavita competed for possession after chasing his own chip and Adam Pompey was quickest to react.
Momentum swung off the back of some penalties and a big impact from the Sharks’ bench, which saw Cronulla cross for tries to Mawene Hiroti and K.L. Iro. The first came after a long-range break, before the right edge was outflanked, while the second was the product of pressure and a clever tap back from a Nicho Hynes kick.
There was a late reprieve, as Nicoll-Klokstad saved a certain try right on halftime, jolting the ball from Braden Hamlin-Uele in a miraculous effort, with the prop about to score. The Warriors had defended mightily – with a 20-5 deficit of tackles in the opposition red zone in the first half – but could they maintain it?
They started perfectly, with Fisher-Harris crossing 90 seconds after the break following some brilliant deception by Vaimauga, with the youngster producing a no-look pass to put his co-captain across untouched.
Jackson Ford was off for a head injury assessment (HIA) check soon afterwards, but the Warriors didn’t relent, scoring two smashing tries in five minutes. The first to Vaimauga was an indication of the visitors’ confidence, with Metcalf’s searing break, following a late Clark offload, finished by the youngster. The second was another beauty, with Halasima’s powerful leap to reel in a Harris-Tavita kick, a remarkable effort from the teenager.
An individual effort from Harris-Tavita sealed the result with 14 minutes to play, before the five-eighth rubbed salt in a gaping wound with an 80m intercept at the death.
Warriors 40 (Chanel Harris-Tavita 2, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Adam Pompey, James Fisher-Harris, Demitric Vaimauga, Leka Halasima tries; Luke Metcalf 5 cons, pen)
Sharks 10 (Mawene Hiroti, KL Iro tries; Nicho Hynes con)
HT: 12-10
