We're throwing it back to an old favourite thanks to our friends at Mazda and dialled up June 29, 2008.
For our Throwback Thursday feature we'll be taking you back to special moments and players in the club's history directly aligned with the team the Vodafone Warriors were scheduled to meet in the original draw before the 2020 season was suspended.
That means locking in this week on the Wests Tigers, our intended fourth-round opponents this Saturday (April 4) in what would have been our first game day of the season at Mount Smart Stadium.
For this week's TBT, the calendar has been dialled back to one of the most exceptional contests in the club’s history on June 29, 2008.
On a stunning Sunday afternoon at Leichhardt Oval, the clash against the Tigers was notable for the great Ruben Wiki making his 300th first-grade career appearance, the first New Zealander to reach the mark.
He led the team out in a match he and his teammates would celebrate with a memorable 28-26 victory, the late Sonny Fai the first try-scorer on a day when the Vodafone Warriors were without first-choice players Steve Price, Brent Tate and Manu Vatuvei.
Especially poignant were the scenes after the match when the Wests Tigers players gave Wiki a guard of honour with Wiki’s original coach at Canberra Tim Sheens presenting him with a jersey signed by the Tigers players.
Match details:
At Leichhardt Oval, Sydney
Wests Tigers 26 (Taniela Tuiaki 3, Robbie Farah, Chris Lawrence tries; Brett Hodgson 3 conversions).
Vodafone Warriors 28 (Sonny Fai, Nathan Fien, Ian Henderson, Lance Hohaia, Sam Rapira tries; Lance Hohaia 2 conversions; Michael Witt 2 conversions).
Halftime: 16-6 Vodafone Warriors.
Referee: Steve Lyons.
Teams:
Wests Tigers | Brett Hodgson (c); Taniela Tuiaki, Dean Collis, Chris Lawrence, Beau Ryan; Benji Marshall, Mathew Head; Bronson Harrison, Robbie Farah, Bryce Gibbs; Ben Te’o, Chris Heighington; Liam Fulton. Interchange: John Morris, Dene Halatau, Daine Laurie, Ryan Tandy. Coach | Tim Sheens.
Vodafone Warriors | Lance Hohaia; Aidan Kirk, Jerome Ropati, Simon Mannering, Malo Solomona; Grant Rovelli, Nathan Fien; Ruben Wiki, Ian Henderson, Sam Rapira; Sonny Fai, Logan Swann; Micheal Luck (c). Interchange: Michael Witt, Ben Matulino, Evarn Tuimavave, Epalahame Lauaki. Coach: Ivan Cleary.
