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Sironen ready to hook into Mr Fix-It role at Warriors

It seems one of the delights in playing for the Warriors - getting the chance to live and work in New Zealand - is evading new recruit Bayley Sironen.

"For me personally, it's not too bad as I don't have any kids or anything, but for the guys with families it would be good to get back there," Sironen told NRL.com.

"But it's a bit weird, especially for me being a new player. I've never been to New Zealand so it's a bit of a funny one - I'm waiting to use my passport.

"I hope we're back there soon."

Meantime, the 24-year-old who has played just 24 NRL games in three seasons is just looking to rapidly inflate that number now that he's at his third NRL club.

Match Highlights: Titans v Warriors

His versatility was definitely on show for coach Nathan Brown on Saturday when the Warriors drew 12-12 with the Titans at Lismore's Oakes Oval.

Sironen played in a few forward positions before moving to hooker, when Wayde Egan's match came to a premature end through injury.

With Egan in doubt to be right for the start of the season due to his elbow problem, Sironen's versatility will come in handy.

"I'm not too sure where I'll be [for round one]. I played a bit of edge today and then moved to lock and then when Waydo hurt his elbow I got thrown in at No.9," he said, after playing a lot of his junior football in the halves like his older brother, Manly back-rower, Curtis Sironen.

"It's a bit of a curse being able to cover a few positions as I don't get to nail down just the one. But if that gets me into the 17 then I'll be happy to do that. 

"I did actually prefer playing in the middle today. I felt really comfortable there."

He was a vital cog in the Warriors' strident defence for the last 10 minutes of the trial as the Titans pummelled their line, with no rewards.

"Absolutely and that's massive. That's what you want to build your season on - resilience on your line," he said.

"Games are won on defence so if we can hold your line set after set after set, it shows something good is working for us. That was really pleasing."

Coming from a famous rugby league family, he's slipping into the Warriors "whanau".

"It's the second time I've come to a new club after leaving the Tigers to go to the Rabbitohs. So I sort of knew what to expect but it's a new situation for me that we're kind of all living together,'" he said of the Warriors' base camp at Gosford on the NSW Central Coast. They hope to return to Auckland in April.

Episode 1 - Footy returns for 2021

"It's helped me actually get to know everyone well because we see each other every day.

"As tough as the situation is - especially for the New Zealand boys - it's a blessing for us as a footy side.

"I've found the transition really easy. There are so many good people here at the club. They've all been great and welcoming. I'm loving it so far."

The key player signings to watch in 2021

The only jolt is training sessions when he has to oppose big boppers like Ben Murdoch-Masila and Addin Fonua-Blake.

"You think having them on your side would be good but that's only game day. When I signed here I thought 'How good is this? I don't have to verse them'. But I train against them every day so I have to tackle them," he said.

"Still, they were awesome [against the Titans] - their carries were so strong so I'm going to try and jump on the back of a few of those."

Acknowledgement of Country

The New Zealand Warriors honour the mana of the Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa, Australia and the Pacific. We acknowledge the traditional kaitiaki of the lands, elders past and present, their stories, their traditions, their mamae and their mana motuhake.

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