Shaun Johnson is the only NZ Warriors half guaranteed a starting spot for the upcoming NRL season, with the search still on to find his partner.
Johnson, 31, has returned to the Warriors after three seasons with Cronulla Sharks and will likely command the No.7 jersey, when the season begins in March.
But with former Gold Coast Titans five-eighth Ash Taylor joining incumbents Chanel Harris-Tavita and Kodi Nikorima on the roster, coaches face a difficult choice to determine who will start alongside Johnson.
The Warriors will undoubtedly make the most of their two pre-season trial matches to determine Johnson's ideal partner, facing off against Melbourne Storm on February 19 and Gold Coast on February 26.
Harris-Tavita may find himself as front-runner for the first opportunity to partner Johnson, after his selection for the Māori All Stars on Saturday, admits assistant coach Justin Morgan, but Nikorima's form at test level will also influence the decision.
"Obviously Kodi played a huge amount there last year," says Morgan. "He and Shaun have a great combination at international level - you only have to go back and watch the games they've played together.
"Shaun has obviously one spot locked in and then - not necessarily a shootout - we just need to decide on who might fit that other role for us.
Taylor, 26, is another tempting option for the Warriors, after an impressive train-and-trial stint convinced the Warriors to sign him on a one-year deal.
"We certainly haven't taken away the option of Ash Taylor," says Morgan. "He's come good over the last couple of weeks as well.
"He's really started to ramp up his training. His movements, certainly defensively, have been really impressive.
"We were very impressed with him before Christmas and since he's come back, he's continued that progression.
"To say we're clear on what we want there... we're not 100 percent clear."
Nikorima's utility value also adds another dimension to the equation, with his ability to cover all four positions in the team's spine.
And ultimately, Johnson's partner could be found by whichever player gives the Warriors the best balance across all positions on the field, Morgan explains.
"To give you some combinations, if we decide to play Josh Curran in the back row and Jazz [Tevaga] at 13, Chanel or Kodi might slot into No.14.
"But if we decide to put Josh Curran at 13, we might need Jazz to slot in at No.14, and we'd need Chanel and/or Kodi... one of those would play in the halves.
"Kodi could fill in at fullback for us as well. It's all those different moving parts.
"We will trial one or two combinations next week, and then we might trial one or two combinations in the final trial - with Shaun - and make the final decision on it.
"But whatever we go with, we're very comfortable we've got a lot of reps in all of those guys over the past six weeks. While it might not appear they get more than 20-30 minutes of gametime together in a trial, the fact they've had lots of reps at training will make us very comfortable.
"There's a lot of moving parts, but understand that's the thought process we've got to go through, once we decide which way is the best way forward for us."
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