Round 26
Broncos 36 d. Warriors 12

2006 NRL Telstra Premiership Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

Location: Aus_NZ > National > First Grade Competition: NRL Telstra Premiership

Hopes extinguished - Vodafone Warriors 12, Brisbane 36
Sun September 3, 2006
Source: www.warriors.co.nz

For a few minutes the Vodafone Warriors had real hope of completing one of their most famous comebacks when they faced Brisbane in their final match of the 2006 NRL season at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.

In front of a crowd of almost 48,000 - Brisbane's biggest of the season - the Broncos stormed to an 18-0 lead inside 30 minutes.

But then came a recovery operation either side of halftime that provided more than a glimmer that the Vodafone Warriors could turn the contest around completely.

Winger Todd Byrne started it. He came into the match early after fullback Brent Webb was forced off with rib damage, making it a forgettable 103rd and final outing for the club.
Byrne, on the other hand, was having his first match for 14 weeks after breaking his right arm against Cronulla on May 27.

And four minutes from the break he marked his return by racing onto a George Gatis bomb, climbing above Brisbane opposite Karmichael Hunt to snare his second try of the season. Lance Hohaia skimmed the conversion off the post to close the margin to 6-18 at halftime. Then 10 minutes into the second half, the alarm bells began to ring for Brisbane when another bomb yielded a second try for the Vodafone Warriors.

This time halfback Grant Rovelli, on the short list for the Dally M Rookie of the Year title, went the aerial route on his side's left flank. Giant Manu Vatuvei tipped the ball back, straight to hooker Gatis who speared through for his second try of the year. Again Hohaia converted and there was a different look about the battle with Brisbane leading just 18-12.

It stayed that way for 11 minutes as the Vodafone Warriors searched for the equaliser.

They couldn't execute, though, and it was Brisbane which found the opening to take the match out of their reach.

Three times the Broncos struck in the 61st, 63rd and 72nd minutes to seal the Vodafone Warriors' fate, the 36-12 result launching them into third place on the points table, earning them a home play-off against St George Illawarra when the finals start next weekend.

It was a tough end to a gritty season for the Vodafone Warriors, the 24-point losing margin not the sort of celebration needed for Leeds-bound Webb or Castleford-bound Awen Guttenbeil, not forgetting Micheal Luck who was playing his 100th match.

In the end the Vodafone Warriors finished their season with a 50 per cent record of 12 wins and 12 losses, the best effort in three years and a record bettered only three times in the club's history (2002, 2003 and 1995). They finished 10th with a points for and against record of 552-463, a differential of plus 89, the fourth best in the competition.

Webb was the top try scorer with 11 tries and Tony Martin, who missed the last fourth matches with a shoulder injury, was the top points scorer with 160 points.

Match details:
At Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane:
VODAFONE WARRIORS 12 (Todd Byrne, George Gatis tries; Lance Hohaia 2 conversions).
BRISBANE BRONCOS 36 (Justin Hodges 2, Shane Perry, Shaun Berrigan, Karmichael Hunt, Darren Lockyer tries; Corey Parker 4 conversions; Darren Lockyer 2 conversions).
Halftime: 18-6 Broncos.
Referee: Sean Hampstead.
Crowd: 47,193.

News sent by: www.warriors.co.nz


Warriors Round 26 Match Notes vs Broncos
Sat September 2, 2006
Source: www.warriors.co.nz

The New Zealand Warriors team had its final training run before flying to Brisbane this afternoon.

Nathan Fien was ruled out on Friday after being originally named on the bench. He is again being troubled by a back injury that kept him out of the wins against North Queensland and Melbourne.

Todd Byrne has come onto the bench as Fien's replacement. Byrne is set to make his first appearance in 14 weeks. He last played against Cronulla on May 27 when he broke his right arm.

Cooper Vuna has travelled with the team as 18th man.

The 18 players going to Brisbane constitute the only players left in the NRL squad who were fit for consideration. The remaining five are all on the injury list.

MICHEAL LUCK
Micheal Luck makes his 100th NRL appearance tomorrow.

He joined the Vodafone Warriors this year after playing 76 matches for the North Queensland Cowboys, the majority of them off the bench. He made his debut against the Northern Eagles in Cairns on April 22, 2001.

Luck will complete his first season with the Vodafone Warriors by achieving the distinction of appearing in all 24 matches. Grant Rovelli, another new signing in 2006, is the only other player who has gone through the season without missing a match.

Luck's home town is Gatton, about 100km west of Brisbane.

He played for the Junior Kangaroos against the Junior Kiwis in Wellington in 2001. Among his team-mates then were Justin Hodges, Brent Tate and Corey Parker, all opponents in the Brisbane team tomorrow. Playing for the Junior Kiwis that day was Luck's current Vodafone Warriors team-mate Lance Hohaia. The Junior Kangaroos won the match 50-12.

AWEN GUTTENBEIL & BRENT WEBB
Awen Guttenbeil and Brent Webb make their last appearances for the Vodafone Warriors tomorrow.

Castleford-bound Guttenbeil, who made his debut against North Sydney in 1996, will play his 170th match.

Leeds-bound Webb will play for the club for the 103rd time after starting out against Newcastle in 2002.

CASUALTY WARD
Tony Martin, Nathan Fien, Wairangi Koopu, Sonny Fai and George Tuakura were all unable to be considered for the last match of the season.

BARTERCARD CUP
The Bartercard Cup play-offs continue this weekend. No -players from the Vodafone Warriors' NRL squad will be involved.

STATISTICS
Last weekend's 42-16 win was the Vodafone Warriors' biggest victory against the Sydney Roosters. The previous best was the 42-30 result in Sydney in 2001. The Vodafone Warriors now have an 11-9 advantage in 20 encounters between the two clubs.

The victory was the Vodafone Warriors' 12th of the season in 23 matches. It gave Ivan Cleary a 52.17 per cent winning strike rate as coach. He will finish his first season as coach with at least a 50 per cent record. Only Daniel Anderson ranks above him in the club's history.

By beating the Roosters, the Vodafone Warriors achieved their second run of four consecutive wins this season (Cronulla, North Queensland, Melbourne and the Roosters). Earlier they beat the Roosters, Newcastle, South Sydney and Penrith in successive matches.

If the Vodafone Warriors beat Brisbane tomorrow they will equal the 1995 team's achievement of 13 wins in a season. That number of wins in one season has been bettered only twice in the club's 12 seasons (2002 with 19 and 2003 with 17).

The Vodafone Warriors started the 2006 season by winning only four of their first 12 matches. They have gone on to win eight of their last 11. They finished their home programme with seven wins and fives losses, winning each of their last three matches at Mt Smart Stadium and five of their last six.

The Vodafone Warriors have won seven of 11 clashes since beating the Broncos for the first time in 2001. Four of those wins have been achieved at home and three in Brisbane.

Jerome Ropati gave the club's individual try-scoring record a shake by scoring four tries against the Roosters, one short of Francis Meli's record five against the Bulldogs in 2003. Phil Blake also scored four tries against Western Suburbs in 1995 while Stacey Jones snared four against Wests in 1999.

Brent Webb is the club's leading try-scorer this season heading into the final match - but only just. He has 11 tries while Manu Vatuvei is just behind with 10 and Simon Mannering and Jerome Ropati have nine each.

The Vodafone Warriors have scored 540 points and conceded only 427 in 23 matches, making them the fourth best-ranked side in the competition on attack and the third-best ranked on defence. Their points differential of plus 113 is the third best in the competition behind only Melbourne and the Bulldogs.

They have scored 95 tries with only Newcastle (106) and Melbourne (104) scoring more.

Grant Rovelli, who is on the short list for the 2006 Dally M Rookie of the Year, is third equal for most try assists this season despite playing only 15 matches at halfback (he was mainly a bench player in the first eight matches of the year). He is credited with 17 try assists, equal with Brett Finch (Sydney Roosters). Only Andrew Johns (26) and Matt Orford (24) rank above Rovelli while the likes of Darren Lockyer, Jason Smith, Trent Barrett, Brett Kimmorley, Brent Sherwin and Scott Prince are all below him.

The Vodafone Warriors' regular front rowers have scored a total of 23 of the club's 95 tries so far this season ? Ruben Wiki scored his sixth try of the year last week while Steve Price has five, Evarn Tuimavave has four and so does hooker Nathan Fien. Interchange hooker George Gatis and prop Sam Rapira have one each while Lance Hohaia scored two of his five tries playing at hooker.

The regular outside backs have 43 tries between them ? Brent Webb (11), Manu Vatuvei (10), Simon Mannering (9), Tony Martin (6), Patrick Ah Van (4) and Lance Hohaia (3).

Of the players still in the club's first-grade squad, winger Cooper Vuna is the only one to appear in the NRL this year who hasn't scored a try. Epalahame Lauaki broke his duck with a try against the Roosters last week.

Two players will finish the year with the distinction of appearing in each of the Vodafone Warriors' matches this season. Tomorrow's match will be the 24th on end for 2006 newcomers Grant Rovelli and Micheal Luck.

PREVIOUS ENCOUNTERS V BRISBANE BRONCOS
Overall: Played 20, Won 7, Lost 13
At Suncorp Stadium: Played 2, Won 1, Lost 1
Biggest win: 32-12 at ANZ Stadium, 2003
Most recent win: 30-18 at Ericsson Stadium, 2005

VODAFONE WARRIORS V BRISBANE BRONCOS
Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
2.30pm (AEST), Sunday, September 3, 2006
Referee: Sean Hampstead

1 Brent Webb
2 Patrick Ah Van
3 Lance Hohaia
4 Simon Mannering
5 Manu Vatuvei
6 Jerome Ropati
7 Grant Rovelli
8 Ruben Wiki (vc)
9 George Gatis
10 Steve Price (c)
11 Awen Guttenbeil
12 Micheal Luck
13 Louis Anderson

Subs:
15 Evarn Tuimavave
16 Epalahame Lauaki
17 Sam Rapira
18 Todd Byrne

18th Man: Cooper Vuna

News sent by: www.warriors.co.nz

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