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Message: [QUOTE="Big Pete, post: 3690891, member: 1899"] There's no other team in the competition I struggle to pick more than the Warriors. I'd say we're on the same boat with the Warriors, just with a couple of minor variations. For the sake of consistensy here's my line-up Warriors 2025 1. Taine Tauapiki 2. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck 3. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstaed 4. Rocco Berry/Ali Leiataua/Adam Pompey 5. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak 6. Luke Metcalf 7. Te Maire Martin/Tanah Boyd 8. James Fisher-Harris 9. Wayde Egan 10. Mitch Barnett 11. Marata Niukore 12. Kurt Capewell 13. Tohu Harris 14. Dylan Walker 15. Erin Clark 16. Demitric Vaimauga 17. Jackson Ford Normally it's the spine players that take centre stage but when it comes to the Warriors their hopes rely heavily on their forwards. Webster really enjoys using short passes and having his forwards combine in the middle and hit that middle third. They'll go in without Fonua-Blake who's decided to return to Sydney. However they couldn't have asked for a better replacement than Fisher-Harris. Penrith did right by one of their former assistants and now they have somebody who can really bolster their middle. What they might lose in potency around the middle, they'll make up for with aggression, particularly in defence. The key is going to be keeping them on the field. Both Harris and Niukore had issues with their fitness with Harris in particular being a huge loss through the back end of 24. If the Warriors are to challenge, they'll need their captain at his very best. If the forwards can lay the platform it'll go a long way to helping their inexperienced spine out. That's the big question mark right there, who can step up and play the role Shaun Johnson was able to in '23? I'd say of the two Te Maire has the higher skill-set and will ideally fill that role. Tanah hasn't really found his stride yet in the NRL but I just got a feeling that the change in scenary and an opportunity to play in this system should help his game. There maybe an element of wishful thinking going on with that backline. On paper it looks strong and there's some healthy competition for spots but there's certainly some question marks. Tauapiki had some nice moments in '24 but injury limited his involvement and he's certainly not established at this level. I'd also have to see RTS and CNK in action before I could lock them down in those positions. They certainly have the talent but CNK was always more of a fullback/five eighth coming through and Tuivasa-Sheck struggled to live up to the lofty expectations. If it all goes to plan, then you'd have two of the best working it out of trouble, Tauapiki and CNK like to keep busy and then you have some skill from Berry and Leiataua. The bench could be a real point of difference. Walker has been a handy pick-up, I rate the Clark signing and think he can bring plenty of energy and up-tempo play off the bench. Ford has had his moments, if he can find some consistensy he'll just bolster the side. If not the Warriors have a few exciting prospects including Demitric Vaimauga who had an unfortunate injury set-back last year but was moving well in the back-end. With Halasima in the mix it could give them another dimension and some more energy. So plenty to like and with a softer draw to start off with, they maybe able to bank some wins early and really take advantage of the Origin period. They'll always be a tough assignments at home, but on the flip-side sometimes you don't know what Warriors side you're going to get when they travel away. That's what makes them so hard to pick. YouTubers still love to run with those tier videos. The Warriors are in the same tier as Cowboys and Manly but I have them towards the bottom. Just think they'll lose too many close games. [/QUOTE]

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