A competitive first half gave way to a disappointing second stanza as the One New Zealand Warriors slumped to a 12-38 loss to the highly-ranked Storm in Saturday’s round nine Jersey Flegg Cup (under-21) match in Melbourne.
The Warriors arrived in Victoria planning to build on a solid run of performances in recent weeks which had included two wins, two draws and a six-point loss.
The initial signs couldn’t have been more promising when, in just the second minute, they put together some short passes for prop Rodney Tuipulotu-Vea to score with Jett Cleary’s conversion giving them a 6-0 lead.
There it stayed for 20 minutes as both sides went at each other in a bruising encounter before the Storm produced a one-two punch with two tries in quick succession to hold a 12-6 halftime lead.
Match: Storm v Warriors
Round 9 -
home Team
Storm
1st Position
away Team
Warriors
11th Position
Venue: Seabrook Reserve, Broadmeadows
There was no scoreboard movement in the first 17 minutes of the second half as the Warriors kept hanging tough in the grind but then tries in the 56th and 59th minutes allowed the Storm to open up a 24-6 lead.
There was a glimmer of hope in the 67th minute when Cleary dummied and darted over to bring the scoreline back to 12-24 but the Warriors couldn’t stay with the Storm as they crossed for three tries in the final 10 minutes.
The result leaves the Warriors with two wins, two draws and four losses while Melbourne moved to the top of the ladder pending the outcome of other games in the round.
The Warriors are on the road again next Saturday facing the Raiders when they seek to avenge a heavy season-opening defeat.
