NZ Warriors coach Nathan Brown concedes some of his players simply gave up in Monday's record-breaking 70-10 loss to Melbourne Storm.
Facing off in the traditional Anzac Day clash, the Warriors imploded in the second half, conceding 54 unanswered points, after trailing by only six at halftime.
The 60-point margin is the largest in the Warriors history, more than the 62-6 defeat against Penrith Panthers in 2013.
The second half compounded the nature and the reality of the defeat for the Warriors, conceding more than a point a minute in the last 40. From the 50th minute to full time, the Storm ran in nine tries without any threat of reply from a shellshocked Warriors outfit.
Fronting media immediately after the game, coach Brown didn't shirk responsibility for the defeat or mince his words, admitting some of his players stopped trying once the going got tough.
"Some people did, I've got no doubt at all" a stern Brown said. "I've been in this game a long time, and it's disappointing to actually sit here and say that.
"Some people looked for the easiest way out they could and it's sad. That's not a reflection of all the players - we had some players that worked extremely hard and put themselves on the line, but when you're playing against a team that's that good and you don't have the ball, the best players can look not good.
"That's what the Storm can do to you. I don't know how many tackles we had the ball for in the second half, but you could put many players out there.
"Sometimes, the fatigue causes people to make some bad decisions, but we had some people that made some bad decisions, not because of fatigue, and that's what's disappointing.
The Warriors won't have to wait long to make amends for the defeat, with a short turnaround before their next fixture against Canberra Raiders in Redcliffe on Saturday, just four days away.
While the brief respite won't be ideal for a team reeling from a record defeat, Brown sees his side's clash against the Raiders as the perfect opportunity to bounce back straight away.
"We'll get up tomorrow," he added. "Obviously, we'll have a chat when we get back to Brisbane and then we've got a short turnaround.
"The positive thing is we are playing in four days' time, we don't have to wait eight, nine days to play. We've got a short turnaround and we'll get back into it."
NRL regulations mean Brown will have to name his matchday squad to face the Raiders on Tuesday, less than 24 hours after Monday's loss.
But even after hitting out at the attitude of some of his stars, the Warriors coach isn't giving anything away on how the loss will affect his plans for next Saturday.
The only players guaranteed to not feature again are Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, who suffered a concussion, and Josh Curran, after a medial collateral ligament (MCL) injury to his knee. Kodi Nikorima could also be forced out, after a positive COVID-19 test, while forward Aaron Pene faces a judiciary hearing for head contact.
"I'm not going to sit here and make any statements about doing certain things now to players," said Brown. "I'm pretty clear about what I think happened and what I know happened.
"There's going to be some strong messages to certain individuals. There's no doubt about that, you can't hide from that.
"What we do off the back of it, you'll just have to wait and see."
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