Wah-wee: Draw like a win

• Published date: 14 April 2024
• Author: Michael Burgess at Mt Smart League
• Publication title: Herald on Sunday

Okay, this wasn’t a win at Mt Smart Stadium — but the 22-22 draw felt like one

After being outplayed for most of the match, the Warriors’ plight looked hopeless, trailing by eight points with less than a minute to play.

But they produced a remarkable comeback — aided by a controversial penalty on the hooter — to take the game to golden point.

They had the better chances in extra time, with a crucial fumble at one point and another Shaun Johnson attempt sailing wide, but couldn’t complete the job.

But they will take the point, a reward for a never-say-die mentality.

After being almost flawless last week, they misplaced the instruction manual for most of last night.

They were strangely off-key, riddled by errors and poor decisions.

The Sea Eagles were excellent, superbly marshalled by Daly Cherry-Evans, along with a brutal forward display, but the Warriors were their own worst enemies at home.

They spent most of the match in a hole, and whenever they had some impetus, seemed to lose it again.

It felt like one of those nights, while the loss of Jazz Tevaga (ankle) just before halftime didn’t help.

But they found a way back, after trailing 16-0 after 35 minutes, then 22-14 with a minute to play.

Then came the unforgettable passage, as Johnson’s sleight of hand put Dallin Watene-Zelezniak across, before the halfback nailed the sideline conversion, then the last-second penalty.

Manly had opened the scoring with a scrappy try in the ninth minute, as Cherry-Evans was first to a loose ball after a couple of kind bounces. The Warriors put themselves under pressure in the first quarter with three simple drops, as either the pass or the focus was wide of the mark.

With an excellent kicking game from Cherry-Evans, the Warriors were fighting for yardage. The sense of messiness was compounded when the Warriors burned their captain’s challenge early.

The home side couldn’t get anything going, while the Sea Eagles were flawless and skinned the Warriors on their right edge, with Cherry-Evans collecting Tommy Talau’s astute crosskick to finish off. Their dominance was confirmed with their third try to Talau, set up by a savage hit on Watene-Zelezniak.

The Warriors didn’t...