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Sharks 30 Warriors 32
Sharks - Mulitalo 2, Wilton, Katoa & Kennedy tries; Hynes 4 conversions & penalty
Warriors - Egan, Niukore, Johnson, Kosi & Curran tries; Johnson 5 conversions & penalty
Fulltime
40th minute - Johnson slots the kick to put the Warriors ahead with second left, WAR 32-30
From the kickoff, Kosi can't claim the ball and Johnson is standing ahead of him, so he's offside. Hynes will have a shot to force Golden Point.
Hynes is near touch and leaves it right. Warriors win, Warriors win!
39th minute - Sharks go right, but Montoya nails Ramien in a tackle. They keep the ball in hand, but it goes loose and Curran hacks ahead to Sharks half.
Warriors somehow have a penalty to win the game, with Johnson teeing up for a kick at goal.
38th minute - Johnson kicks from his 40 and Katoa almost spills it on his 10.
37th minute - Talakai runs hard. Ramien crosses halfway and passe off the ground.
Sharks kick through, but CNK there again.
36th minute - Niukore is bleeding from the mouth, after colliding with Tevaga in a tackle.
Sharks into WArriors half and Hynes bombs, but CNK has been amazing. Vailea crosses halfway and tramples Hynes.
Johnson kicks high to Kennedy.
35th minute - CNK is down in pain and that looks like a hipdrop, if anything ever was. Sure enough, Finucane is shown the sideline and Sharks will finish this one shorthanded.
Johnson fails to find touch and Mulitalo runs it back.
34th minute - Sharks back on attack. Hynes kicks high and Kosi is underneath, as the rain pours down.
33rd minute - Sharks enter Warriors half and Hynes kicks ahead to CNK, who beats the first tackle. Johnson kicks high to Mulitalo.
32nd minute - Tevaga crosses halfway and Johnson kicks to Mulitalo, who takes it ingoal for a 20m restart. Curran collides with Mulitalo in the followthrough and is on report.
31st minute - McInnes crosses halfway, Hynes kicks high and CNK is safe
30th minute - Sharks kick off and Fonua-Blake hits it up. Johnson kicks from his 40 and Kennedy covers the bounce.
28th minute - From the scrum, Warriors go right, then Walker heads to the posts.
TRY to Curran
Warriors look right and Johnson finds Curran running an angle to the line to score. Johnson converts, 30-30
27th minute - Warriors tap and Sironen heads towards the posts. Set restart and Hamlin-Uele knocks on - captain's challenge is unsuccessful and Warriors have a scrum just metres out.
26th minute - Warriors cross halfway and look right. Johnson kicks to Mulitalo, who obliges with an other spill.
25th minute - Sharks looking to break out of their half, Hynes kicks along the ground and CNK traps it with his foot.
24th minute - CNK takes another high kick under pressure, then reaches halfway. Johnson kicks high to Katoa, who is taken on his line.
23rd minute - Johnson kicks low towards the posts and the Warriors chase well. Hamlin-Uele crosses halfway.
22nd minute - Nikora crosses halfway for Sharks. Hynes kicks for Mulitalo again, but CNK rises high.
21st minute - Sharks have Warriors pinned deep. CNK reaches the 30 and Johnson kicks long to Kennedy.
20th minute - Sharks are hot on attack again, but Talakai is wrapped up on the last tackle.
19th minute - Moylan kicks to the corner, CNK is pinned behind his line, but Kosi is pinged for obstruction.
18th minute - Warriors kick off, Rudolf loses the ball in a tackle, but backwards and Sharks secure it back. Nikora reaches halfway.
16th minute - TRY to Mulitalo
From CNK's mistake, the Sharks shift left and Talakai gives Mulitalo a clear run to the line. He's letting the Warriors know about it and there's some real feeling there on both sides.
Hynes leaves his conversion right, CRO 30-24
15th minute - Johnson kicks to Mulitalo, but the Warriors are lining up to tackle him. Hynes kicks high and CNK can't take the catch.
14th minute - Sharks kick and Fonua-Blake takes the hitup.
12th minute - TRY to Kosi
Ale is making an impact and runs it hard from the dropout. Warriors go right, where quick hands from CNK creates an overlap for his winger.
Johnson converts, CRO 26-24
11th minute - Niukore is back on the field and takes a big hitup from the dropout. Johnson looks right, Kosi snipes from dummy half... Johnson kicks to ingoal and Hynes knocks on.
10th minute - Johnson goes close and offloads to Tevaga, who is also stopped. Volkman kicks to the goal area for a Sharks dropout.
Ninth minute - From the scrum, Warriors go left, Walker straightens towards the posts.
Eighth minute - Johnson tests Mulitalo again, but he's safe this time, but Talakai makes a hash playing the ball. WArriors hot on attack.
Seventh minute - Sharks kick off and Ale runs hard. Tevaga runs next and CNK is looking for work.
Fifth minute - Wilton reaches halfway, Hynes juggles and Moylan kicks to Montoya.
TRY to Johnson
Tevaga makes good metres and Johnson kicks high from halfway and Mulitalo drops it. Johnson is following fast, snaps up the loose ball and there's no-one around to stop him.
Warriors score shorthanded - that's got to encourage them.
Third minute - From the scrum, Warriors go right then left, but Ale spills the pass.
Second minute - CNK takes a second carry over halfway and Volkman kicks high. Katoa spills the ball, ruled backwards, but he drops a pass within seconds to concede possession and position.
First minute - Warriors kick off and Hunt takes the hitup.
Hynes kicks early and CNK meets it.
Warriors will start the second half with only 12 men, with Niukore in the sin bin.
Halftime
40th minute - Sharks surge towards the Warriors line. Hynes kicks to Mulitalo, but Kosi rises higher to claim the catch.
While all this was happening, the bunker was reviewing a hipdrop tackle near halfway and Niukore is sent to the sin bin. Sharks shift right and Ramien is dragged down short, as the siren sounds.
39th minute - Warriors lose the ball in Sharks half and Hynes sprints away to score... but he's called back. Replays show Hunt knocked the ball forward in a tackle of Ford, so the Sharks get the ball, but not the try.
Talakai reaches halfway with the first carry from the scrum.
38th minute - From a scrum on their own 10, Warriors win a penalty and Johnson kicks to the 40.
37th minute - Hamlin-Uele runs off Moylan's shoulder, but can't take the pass. Volkman has passed his HIA.
36th minute - Sharks go left, Moylan kicks for Mulitalo, but CNK tides up behind his line for another dropout.
Sharks receive another short dropout and go back on attack. Nikora tries to break the line and Ford is penalised for a high tackle.
35th minute - Johnson kicks short and Hynes takes it. Sharks back on attack.
Sharks go right, where Ramian is dragged down short of the line. Replays show the ball did not touch the chalk.
34th minute - Sharks hot on attack, Moylan kicks to the tryline and Vailea knocks it dead for a dropout.
33rd minute - Mulitalo reaches halfway and Sharks go right, where they've run amok this afternoon. Hynes kicks to the posts, Kosi spills the ball forward and gathered by an offside teammate.
32nd minute - Walker runs across the field, Johnson kicks to Kennedy.
31st minute - Sharks kick off and Ale has a charge.
30th minute - TRY to Niukore
Warriors on attack and in the red zone. Warriors go right and Johnson finds his second-rower, who shurugs off Wilton and scores to atone for his early mistake.
Johnson converts, CRO 26-12
29th minute - Warriors kick off, Rudolf charges. Walker is in a three-man tackle on McInnes and stays down, clutching his knee.
He's up on his feed and enters the scrum.
27th minute - Sharks charge into Warriors territory, but play stops for Volkman to leave for a head assessment.
TRY to Kennedy
Sharks shift right and the timing of their passes puts the defenders in two minds, with the fullback taking a space to score. Hynes converts, CRO 26-6
26th minute - Johnson kicks high, but Mulitalo eats those up.
Wilton loses the ball, but Warriors are penalised. Hynes kicks to halfway.
25th minute - Good defesive set from the Warriors and Hynes kicks from deep in his half. CNK crosses halfway.
24th minute - Sharks kick off and Fonua-Blake takes the first hitup. Tevaga runs hard and straight, Johnson kicks from halfway to the tryline and Warriors chase well.
22nd minute - TRY to Egan
Volkman puts up a kick to the tryline and it bounces back off Katoa's head to the Warriors, with Egan enjoying a clear run to the line. That's four straight games he's scored.
Johnson converts from in front, CRO 20-6
21st minute - Fonua-Blake reaches halfway and Tevaga goes for a run. Warriors go left, then right, where JOhnson probes.
20th minute - Hynes kicks high and CNK is safe, but cops a high tackle. Johnson kicks towards halfway.
19th minute - Warriors kick off, Sharks run it back.
17th minute - Hynes kicks for Mulitalo to contest, the ball bounces loose off Kosi and Johnson picks up in an offside position. Hynes points to the posts and slots the kick, CRO 20-0
16th minute - Warriors kick off and Sharks bring the ball back hard. Ramien over halfway and Katoa breaks downt he sideline.
14th minute - TRY to Katoa
From the scrum, Sharks go right, then left. Moylan pokes his nose through a gap, another damaging run from Hamlin-Uele.
When the ball goes right, fast hands create an overlap for the other wing. Hynes slots the conversion, CRO 18-0
13th minute - Moylan reaches halfway, but Kosi almost pulls off an intercept, as the ball goes left. Sharks will have a scrum on the Warriors 40.
12th minute - Egan reaches halfway from dummy half and Johnson kicks to Kennedy.
11th minute - Good defensive set from the Warriors, but Hamlin-Uele runs hard over halfway. CNK takes a high kick in hs 10.
10th minute - Warriors go left, Volkman cuts infield and Afoa sets sail for the posts. Niukore drives towards the tryline.
Johnson kicks left, but Ford dies with the ball.
Ninth minute - Hynes drops the ball in front of his posts and the ref is very slow to call that a knockon. From the scrum, Warriors shift right, where CNK slips a tackle and they get a set reset.
Eighth minute - CNK reaches halfway with his second run of the set. Johnson kicks high, but Kennedy is safe.
Seventh minute - Gonna be a long afternoon for the Warriors at this rate.
Sharks take the kickoff, but will kick from their own half. Hynes finds Montoya, who runs hard.
Fifth minute - TRY to Mulitalo
Sharks have a set restart, as they surge towards the tryline. They shift left, where Talakai puts his winger into space for another quick try.
Hynes converts from wide out, CRO 12-0
Fourth minute - Warriors kick off and Hynes crosses halfway, before finding Nikora.
Second minute - TRY to Wilton
Hynes kicks wide to Mulitalo, the ball goes loose and Talakai finds Wilton to score. Hope everyone had a flutter on Sharks try for first scorer at the TAB - fifth straight game Warriors have conceded in the first five minutes.
Hynes bounces his sideline conversion off the right upright and over, CRO 6-0
First minute - Sharks kick off and Afoa runs off the back fence, but is driven back. Niukore drops the ball and Sharks are hot on attack immediately.
*****
Kia ora, good afternoon and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the NRL clash between NZ Warriors and Cronulla Sharks at Sydney's PointsBet Stadium.
With captain Tohu Harris ruled out of this encounter with a knee injury, hooker Wayde Egan will wear the armband and try to inspire his team to a fourth win in the opening five rounds of the season.
The Warriors have shown some qualities that have been conspicuously missing over the years, clawing back from a no-try call and an eight-point deficit to overhaul Canterbury Bulldogs last week at Mt Smart.
Without Harris, Jazz Tevaga moves into the starting pack, while Ronald Volkman replaces Te Maire Martin, who suffered concussion last week, after a miracle comeback from brain bleeding in his past.
Join us at 6pm for kickoff.
TAB Odds: Sharks $1.25, Warriors $3.80
Sharks: 1-William Kennedy, 2-Sione Katoa, 3-Jesse Ramien, 4-Siosifa Talakai, 5-Ronaldo Mulitalo, 6-Matt Moylan, 7-Nico Hynes, 8-Toby Rudolf, 9-Blayke Brailey, 10-Braden Hamlin-Uele, 11-Briton Nikora, 12-Teig Wilton, 13-Dale Finucane
Interchange: 14-Cam McInnes, 15-Royce Hunt, 16-Jack Williams, 17-Braydon Trindall
Warriors: 1-Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 2-Edward Kosi, 3-Viliami Vailea, 4-Adam Pompey, 5-Marcelo Montoya, 6-Ronald Volkman, 7-Shaun Johnson, 8-Addin Fonua-Blake, 9-Wayde Egan, 10-Bunty Afoa, 11-Jackson Ford, 12-Marata Niukore, 16-Jazz Tevaga
Interchange: 14-Dylan Walker, 15-Bayley Sironen, 17-Tom Ale, 18-Josh Curran
'They change the game': Warriors' bald bromance revelation in stellar start
Alex Powell
While no NRL player ever wants to be considered a primary option off the bench, NZ Warriors duo Jazz Tevaga and Dylan Walker have proven a revelation in their side's start to the 2023 season.
With three wins from four matches, the Warriors forward pack has proven to be their trump card already, leading a strong defensive effort to close out wins.
But no NRL side is ever successful without firepower off the interchange bench and the Warriors appear to have a combination to rival the best in the competition.
Despite previously plying his trade across the centres and halves with Manly Sea Eagles, Walker has found a niche in the Warriors No.14 jersey, adding ballplaying firepower off the bench.
Meanwhile, despite missing the first three rounds of the season with injury, club stalwart Tevaga has only added to what Walker brings.
Tevaga is no stranger to a role as an impact player, named NRL Interchange Player of the Year at the 2018 Dally M Awards.
In the last two weeks, with wins over North Queensland Cowboys and Canterbury Bulldogs, the duo have been a one-two punch opposition teams have struggled to contain, with Walker sending his mate over for a try at Townsville - just the eighth in his career.
As part of a forward pack that contains star names such as captain Tohu Harris and Addin Fonua-Blake, the pair complement the team's starters in a noticeable way.
"We've got a good combination," said Tevaga. "We've got a few big boys, then me and Walks off the bench bring a lot of energy.
"We've got a lot more experience in our pack, we're a lot calmer. It's a good mix."
Their influence isn't unnoticed by teammates either. For the players backed by coach Andrew Webster to start each week, the security of having a bench that supports them so well is a luxury the Warriors have missed over the past few years.
"I hate complimenting them, but they've been killing it for us," joked Fonua-Blake.
"Me and big Bunts [Bunty Afoa] go out there and try to do a job. When those boys come on, they change the game.
"The past two games that Jazz has been playing, he bought a real punch off the bench - got himself a meat pie [try] a couple of weeks ago, with a short ball off Walks.
"Walks brings that leg speed through the middle, ballplaying that gives the team a different look. It helps us in attack, he plays that link well with Shauny [Shaun Johnson].
"I know the boys out wide love playing alongside Walks and we're having some real joy through the middle with him as well."
The Tevaga-Walker combination brings one snag. With both sporting shaved heads - Tevaga's as tribute to friend and former Warriors junior Roman Tuhimata - coaches and support staff have trouble differentiating between the two.
While a nickname for the pair is yet to stick, Tevaga is happy to use the confusion to his advantage.
"We've tossed up a few," added Tevaga. "'Hairless Hombres' is something, but 'Bald Bros' to me is real simple.
"When we're in video review, sometimes the coach gets mixed up on who's who. If Dylan Walker misses a tackle he's like, 'Jazz!' and I'm like, 'nah mate, it's Walks'.
"If I do something bad and he calls me out, I say it was Walks.
"It's been good."
