LIVE COMMENTARY (Be sure to refresh your browser)
Warriors - 12 Rabbitohs - 40
FULLTIME - Click here for a full wrap.
75 mins - TRY WARRIORS - Some consolation for NZ, as Agnatius Paasi pins his ears back burrows to the line, twists and ground the ball on the chalk.
70 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - Walker chip kick bounces perfectly for Johnston to claim his second try. Conversion nailed from the sideline. (40-6)
60 mins - Nikorima grubbers from 15m out, Lawton chases hard and looks as though he may have pounced for a try. He celebrates as he gets to his feet, but the video ref quickly puts paid to that. Knock on and no try.
55 mins - NZ break, flick pass out the back goes to deck but it's touched by the Bunnies. Six more and 20m out now.
51 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - Damian Cook explodes out of dummy half, looks to have been wrapped up over the line but shows great strength to spin out of the tackle and place the ball down.
51 mins - Six again restart and the Bunnies are 20m out from the NZ line.
50 mins - Peta Hiku with some room out wide, dives over the line but some superb cover defence shunts the ball free. No try. Knock on. Sigh.
49 mins - Mistake from the restart and NZ will have a shot at the line from 20m out.
47 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - Cody Walker on a great angle from short range to run behind the posts and claim a try in his 100th NRL appearance. (28-6)
46 mins - Penalty Bunnies for a high shot and NZ are under the pump.
44 mins - Green kicks deep on the last, ball rolls into touch at the Bunnies 20m.
43 mins - Nikorima makes a one-on-one strip, NZ survive.
42 mins - Beale spills what looked to be a straightforward grubber reception and the Bunnies are immediately on the offensive.
41 mins - Rabbitohs receive to get us restarted.
Back underway...
HALFTIME
40 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - Mitchell conjures some more magic right on the stroke of half time, finding Alex Johnston with a delightful long skip pass for the wing to sprint 20m to score out wide. Conversion wide. (Bunnies 22-6)
38 mins - NZ finding holes here. Lawton looks wide for an overlap but his pass floats forward.
36 mins - Deft offload in the tackle from Harris to set Lawton free. Nikorima spots half a gap, forced to throw a speculator on the last tackle that falls to the Bunnies.
34 mins - Fusitu'a seems to have a clean run to the line from 5m out, cuts inside but spills the ball. He gets up dazed, and replays reveal a clear shot to the back of his head from Mitchell. Definite high tackle, but somehow it escapes all the of the officials.
33 mins - Back-to- back six again restarts and NZ are just 10m out here. Referee has had enough of the infringements, and it's Cody Walker who's sent to the sinbin, just as his NZ namesake Nikorima rejoins play.
31 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - Smart heads up play by Cody Walker, who spots numbers wide and toes a grubber under duress for Braidon Burns to collect and claim an easy try. Conversion is over. (Bunnies 18-6)
30 mins - Reynolds deemed to have been hit late after the kick by Karl Lawton. Bunnies will raid again.
29 mins - NZ with some attacking ball, RTS leaps to take the 5th tackle bomb but he's wrapped up by the Bunnies defence. Handover.
25 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - Simple second man play from close range sees Adam Reynolds over for the try next to the posts, as they immediately take advantage of their extra man. Conversion good. (Souths 12-6)
23 mins - Overlap for NZ and a try looming but Gagi intercepts, bolts down the righthand touch but he's mowed down by RTS. Nikorima deemed to have flopped in thye tackle and he's sent to the sinbin. Huge swing there.
21 mins - Nikorima puts Harris through a gap, looking for support, tries to pass over the top but the Bunnies get a hand to it and save a certain try. Goal-line droput and another set here for NZ.
19 mins - NZ carry from their own 20m now. RTS scoots out of dummy half for an easy 15m. 66m gain here, bomb goes up and bounces into Bunnies' hands at their own 20m.
18 mins - Lachlan Burr has failed an HIA and that will do it for his night. Nikorima probes, Green bombs, Johnston receives under high pressure. Excellent set there for NZ.
16 mins - Accidental offside on the bomb reception by the Bunnies gifts the Warriors two points. (6-6)
15 mins - Rabbitohs right back on attack. Reynolds grubbers, RTS beaten by the bounce, ball is flicked back inside and they almost grab a circus try here. Review confirms a knock on as the ball is attempted to be placed. Shades of Peta Hiku's howler last week came flooding back right there.
13 mins - Adam Blair with a sloppy effort in the play of the ball, NZ turn it over on the second tackle right in front of the posts.
12 mins - Tom Burgess fumbles in the tackle on the first tackle from the restart. Captain's challenge is unsuccessful and NZ have a prime chance to strike back.
10 mins - TRY RABBITOHS - All too easy for the Bunnies, as they go through the hands, Mitchel creates some space for Campbell Graham, who cuts inside some weak defence to score. Conversion is over. (Bunnies 6-4)
9 mins - Penalty Rabbitohs, late in the count. They'll launch from 30m out.
7 mins - TRY WARRIORS - David Fusitu'a marks his return to the side by running in an easy one in the corner, Green making a savvy play to spot the man and float a well-time pass out wide for his wing. Conversion is wide. (NZ 4-0)
6 mins - Mistake on the wing, Beale collects the loose pass and gains 15m.
5 mins - 5th tackle, Harris rumbles to 10m shy of the line. Grubber from Green trickles dead.
4 mins - Reynolds hoists a bomb and RTS loses it, bounces awkwardly but the referee says the chasers were within 10m and NZ grab the penalty.
3 mins - Green's bomb soundly taken by Mitchell.
2 mins - Steady sets both ways, Fusitu'a tucks it away for his first carry in months, pumps the legs for some excellent metres after contact.
1 min - NZ receive first, Katoa off the long run up for good metres.
7:58pm - Beanies donned, both sides are out on the paddock and kick-off is now imminent. Conditions look great at Bankwest Stadium. Let's get amongst it.
7:57pm - Some great news for the Warriors as we near kick-off, with David Fusitu'a confirmed to take his place in the run-on side. He'll replace Adam Pompey on the wing, with Gerard Beale pushing out to the wing to trade places with Patrick Herbert, who moves to centre.
Agnatius Paasi has been promoted to the interchange at the expense of King Vuniyayawa.
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Kia ora and welcome to play-by-play coverage as, the NZ Warriors look to back up their impressive performance against the North Queensland Cowboys with a win over the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
We bring you live streaming written commentary, video highlights (be sure to refresh your browser) and all the action.
Commentary will start from around 8pm. In the meantime check out the video above for a preview of tonight's game.
LIVE COMMENTARY (Be sure to refresh your browser)
Warriors - 0 Rabbitohs - 0
Betting odds:
Warriors - $3.40 Rabbitohs - $1.30
Pre-match banter:
Warriors coach confident Fusitu'a ready to start
NZ Warriors coach Stephen Kearney is confident star back David Fusitu'a will be part of the run-on side for Friday's clash with the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
The 25-year-old has been named on the extended bench, having not featured since the round two loss to the Canberra Raiders back in March.
Personal issues meant he was unable to join the squad on their initial trip across the Tasman, forcing him to undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine separate from the rest of the squad.
But Kearney believes the Tonga international is now back up to speed and should be ready to retake the field at Bankwest Stadium.
"He's had a fair preparation for this weekend, so we're hopeful that he pulls up okay from today," Kearney says.
"We've got one more run tomorrow and I'm pretty hopeful he's going to be okay to take his place in the team on Friday."
The try-scoring machine would add another potent weapon to the Warriors attack against the Sydneysiders, as they look to string together back-to-back wins for the first time in 2020.
Exactly where Fusitu'a will take his place in the line up is yet to be determined.
The Warriors have chosen to shift him inside from his regular wing to the centres this season.
But off the back of Gerard Beale and Peta Hiku's encouraging combination against the Cowboys, they may also choose to return him to the outside in place of Adam Pompey or Patrick Herbert on Friday.
Kearney says he and his staff will assess what's required against the Bunnies and make a decision closer to kick-off.
"That's something that we're juggling at the moment, where he's best going to suit the footy team," he says.
"Both Gerard and Adam have done a really good job, Patrick also and Peta last week. So, if he takes the field for us on Friday, it will be in a position where we think he's best going to suit us for this game.
"He's fortunate that he's able to play in the wing and the centres, so we'll just have to wait and see how he pulls up."
