The Vodafone Warriors are set to field the least experienced hooker-halves combination in the club’s history after experienced standoff Kieran Foran was today ruled out of the 23rd-round NRL clash against Canberra at Mount Smart Stadium tomorrow (4.00pm kick-off; match day sponsor: Flava).
Foran failed a fitness test on a shoulder complaint at the team’s final training session today but is expected to be available for next week’s clash against South Sydney.
His absence means second-year NRL player Ata Hingano (20) teams up in the halves with inexperienced Mason Lino (23).
Hingano, who made his debut late last season, will be playing just his 12th NRL match and making only his fifth start while it will be just the seventh appearance for Lino and his fourth this year following his first three matches late in the 2015 season.
And at hooker Nathaniel Roache (21) will be starting for only the third time in what will be his 20th NRL outing since debuting last year.
With Foran (171 games) and Shaun Johnson (142 games) sidelined and hooker Issac Luke (228 matches) moved to the bench this week, captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck – in his 111th appearance – will be the only one of the Vodafone Warriors’ all-international spine starting tomorrow.
Apart from Foran, 2017 rookie James Bell is the other player to drop out of the extended squad of 21 players named on Tuesday.
The final line-up will be confirmed an hour before kick-off tomorrow.
VODAFONE WARRIORS v CANBERRA RAIDERS
Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland
4.00pm, Sunday, August 13
VODAFONE WARRIORS
1 ROGER TUIVASA-SHECK (c)
2 DAVID FUSITU’A
3 BLAKE AYSHFORD
4 SOLOMONE KATA
5 KEN MAUMALO
21 MAFOA’AEATA HINGANO
7 MASON LINO
8 JACOB LILLYMAN
9 NATHANIEL ROACHE
10 BEN MATULINO
11 BUNTY AFOA
12 RYAN HOFFMAN
13 SIMON MANNERING
Interchange:
14 ISSAC LUKE
15 SAM LISONE
16 ISAIAH PAPALI’I
18 JAZZ TEVAGA
20 CHRIS SATAE
22 CHARNZE NICOLL-KLOKSTAD
HEAD COACH | STEPHEN KEARNEY
BUY TICKETS NOW | VODAFONE WARRIORS v CANBERRA, MOUNT SMART STADIUM, SUNDAY, AUGUST 13 (4.00PM)
