Warriors vs Canberra Raiders Mt Smart Stadium, Saturday 21 May 2016 Kick Off 5:30pm 1. Tuimoala Lolohea 2. Jonathan Wright 3. Blake Ayshford 4. Matthew Allwood 5. David Fusitua 6. Thomas Leuluai 7. Shaun Johnson 8. Jacob Lillyman 9. Issac Luke 10. Ben Matulino 11. Bodene Thompson 12. Ryan Hoffman 13. Simon Mannering Interchange: 14. Jazz Tevaga 15. Sam Lisone 16. John Palavi 17. James Gavet 18. Toafofoa Sipley 1. Jack Wighton 2. Edrick Lee 3. Jarrod Croker 4. Joseph Leilua 5. Jordan Rapana 6. Blake Austin 7. Aidan Sezer 8. Shannon Boyd 9. Josh Hodgson 10. Paul Vaughan 11. Josh Papalii 12. Elliot Whitehead 13. Luke Bateman Interchange: 14. Kurt Baptiste 15. Jeff Lima 16. Clay Priest 17. Joseph Tapine 18. Sam Williams 19. Frank Paul Nuuausala
Keen to see Bateman in his best position here. I'd really like to see him go to a different club; turning him into a prop isn't going to work out IMO.
9/12* of your run home are against bottom 8 opposition. If you don't make the top 8 with that roster you don't deserve to be playing NRL. *In that 9 I'm including the Cowboys who you face minus their origin players (Thurston, Morgan, Tamou, Scott & possibly Cooper, Feldt & O'neil).
I've been so incredibly tempted to load up on the Raiders @ 31 for the premiership and then cash out before the finals come round but it's round 10 now and I'm still yet to see a single game that's convinced me it's a good idea.
Hodgson has been pretty shit the last few weeks. But nowhere near shit enough to be replaced by Baptiste as a starter.
If the Warriors can get some consistent territory you get the feeling that the Canberra defence is very vulnerable and could easily give up a 22 point lead here...
Canberra didn't play very well, especially in attack. Our edge defence was really, really good for a change though (but probably as much to do with absolutely pathetic opposition).
