Round 11
Warriors 34 d. Tigers 12

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

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

Fitzhenry out for up to six weeks
Mon May 22, 2006
Source: www.weststigers.com.au

Wests Tigers winger Daniel Fitzhenry has been ruled out for five to six weeks with a broken collarbone.

Fitzhenry suffered the injury after being picked up in a four man tackle and driven back in-goal in the 34-12 loss to the Warriors at Ericsson Stadium on Saturday, May 19, in round 11 of the NRL Telstra Premiership.

He will undergo surgery on Tuesday, May 23.

Full-back Shannon McDonnell suffered a suspected rib injury in the match and will undergo further tests on the same day to determine the extent of his injury.

He remains in doubt to represent NSW U19s against Queensland in the match before the State of Origin on Wednesday, May 24.

Fitzhenry and McDonnell now join Ben Galea (hamstring), Shane Elford (virus), Ryan O'Hara (corked upper arm), Sam Harris (ankle), Rocky Trimarchi (shoulder) and Liam Fulton (shoulder) on the club's casualty ward.

The injuries to Fitzhenry and McDonnell had a big impact on the Wests Tigers backline against a fired up Warriors outfit.

The Warriors arguably produced their best first half of the season to record a 22-6 lead at half-time.

The home side had a completion rate of 30 from 37 sets compared to the Wests Tigers' 30 from 40 sets.

It was one of those games that saw the passes stick for the Warriors and every team move pay off. For the Wests Tigers, it was a night best forgotten as injuries and some poor handling let the side down.

The highlight for the Wests Tigers was the two try effort on debut by giant winger Taniela Tuiaki, a late interchange replacement for Elford.

Tuiaki's first try came in the 23rd minute when he ran onto a magical inside no look flick pass by five-eighth Benji Marshall to score behind the posts.

Marshall converted the try to leave the Wests Tigers trailing 16-6.

Tuiaki then scored his second try after latching onto a pass by half-back Scott Prince to beat two defenders to score in the corner.

Marshall converted the try from the sideline to leave the Wests Tigers trailing 34-12 with the score remaining the same until full-time.

Apart from Tuiaki, lock Dene Halatau stood out in a beaten side with 38 tackles.

The loss leaves the Wests Tigers in 11th position with four wins from 10 games.

Wests Tigers will be calling on its army of supporters to remain loyal and get out to support the team in a crunch match against South Sydney at Telstra Stadium on Sunday, May 28, at 3pm.

News sent by: www.weststigers.com.au


There's a new sheriff in town
Sun May 21, 2006
Watch out, Rugby League Outlaws, theres a new sheriff in town and hes a dead eye with a six gun. I'm talking about the New Zealand Warriors, of course, and their incredible victory Saturday night against last years reigning NRL champions, the Wests Tigers.

The Warriors game play was nearly flawless against the Tigers, and the score certainly reflected just how well this team can play when they set their minds to it.

The Warriors wasted no time getting on the board, with Evarn Tuimavave off-loading to Sione Faumuina for the first try less than two minutes into the game. Thirty minutes into the game, Tuimavave offloaded to a red hot Brent Webb, in spite of being held back by two tacklers, who found an opening in the defensive line and raced downfield for another try, increasing the Warriors score to 12-0.

Things only got better for the Warriors from there. Simon Mannering, making only his second NRL appearance after being called up from the Bartercard Cup just one week ago, not only prevented the Tigers from scoring on a high bomb opportunity, but then followed up with a try of his own after a dummy pass assist from Faumuina.

The Tigers finally scored their first try after an amazing flick pass from Benji Marshall to Taniela Tuiaki, another new kid on the block, and a player to watch in the future. It just wasnt going to be the Tigers` night, however, and Warriors hooker George Gatis offloaded to Brent Webb, setting up passes to Awen Guttenbeil and then to a wide open Grant Rovelli, who finished the job. By halftime the Warriors could do no wrong, with a 97.2% completion rate and leading 22-6.

The Warriors continued to dominate the Tigers in the second half, with Louis Anderson and Tuimivave each scoring a try within 17 minutes of the second half, extending the lead to an impressive 34-6. Tuiaki responded with his second try of the game, but by then the damage was done.

Tony Martin completed the game with five goals from six attempts, increasing his total points this year to 84 and with an 80% completion record. Brent Webb is currently the Warriors top scorer, with 5 so far, and was voted player of the game.

The most impressive thing about the Warriors was how they truly played as a team against the Tigers, both offensively and defensively. Their defensive line was incredibly strong, and my favourite moment of the game had to be when 4-5 Warriors players picked up one of the Tigers` ball carriers and simply tossed him out of bounds like a rag doll, followed up with high fives and congratulatory pats on the back for their team mates.

The Warriors were stingy on defense, tackled like they meant business, and played physical and dominating football throughout the entire game. This is exactly whats needed to wear an opposing team down both physically and mentally, and thats precisely what happened at Ericsson Stadium on Saturday night.

If the Warriors can continue to play with the same team mentality and intensity level as they did against the Tigers, the skys the limit, and dont be surprised if this team goes from worst to first by September. It looks like Ivan Cleary has done a fine job of identifying the Warriors` strengths and the current line-up is one they should keep throughout the season. One cant help but feel this victory might very well prove to be a turning point for the Warriors. If nothing else, Saturday nights level of play certainly proved to themselves and to their fans that theyre capable of beating any team in the NRL.

Theres a new sheriff in town.

Dan is a regular contributor at nzwarriors.com

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