Taine Tuaupiki and Kalani Going have been retained in the game day 19 for the One Zealand Warriors’ vital final regular season NRL encounter with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles at 4 Pines Park in Sydney tomorrow night (6.00pm kick-off local time; 8.00pm NZT).
Fullback Tuaupiki and just-crowned New South Wales Cup player of the year Going remain in the squad while prop Bunty Afoa, winger Edward Kosi and standoff Luke Hanson were dropped off at the 24-hour deadline for lineups to be reduced.
The team is otherwise as named on Tuesday with hooker Sam Healey brought in to start in Wayde Egan’s absence.
A hip complaint has put Egan’s 150th milestone appearance on hold for a week allowing the 23-year-old rookie Healey to play his sixth NRL match.
In the Warriors’ last two matches, Egan (28) has been replaced by utility Te Maire Martin after 50 minutes against the Titans and 52 minutes against the Eels.
Match: Sea Eagles v Warriors
Round 27 -
home Team
Sea Eagles
away Team
Warriors
Team Lists
Backs
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Fullback for Sea Eagles is number 1 Tom TrbojevicFullback for Warriors is number 1 Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad
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Winger for Sea Eagles is number 2 Jason SaabWinger for Warriors is number 2 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak
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Centre for Sea Eagles is number 3 Clayton FaulaloCentre for Warriors is number 3 Adam Pompey
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Centre for Sea Eagles is number 4 Tommy TalauCentre for Warriors is number 4 Rocco Berry
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Winger for Sea Eagles is number 5 Lehi HopoateWinger for Warriors is number 5 Roger Tuivasa-Sheck
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Five-Eighth for Sea Eagles is number 6 Luke BrooksFive-Eighth for Warriors is number 6 Chanel Harris-Tavita
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Halfback for Sea Eagles is number 7 Daly Cherry-EvansHalfback for Warriors is number 7 Tanah Boyd
Forwards
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Prop for Sea Eagles is number 8 Matthew LodgeProp for Warriors is number 8 James Fisher-Harris
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Hooker for Sea Eagles is number 9 Jake SimpkinHooker for Warriors is number 9 Samuel Healey
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Prop for Sea Eagles is number 10 Siosiua TaukeiahoProp for Warriors is number 10 Tanner Stowers-Smith
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2nd Row for Sea Eagles is number 11 Corey Waddell2nd Row for Warriors is number 11 Kurt Capewell
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2nd Row for Sea Eagles is number 12 Ben Trbojevic2nd Row for Warriors is number 12 Marata Niukore
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Lock for Sea Eagles is number 13 Jazz TevagaLock for Warriors is number 13 Erin Clark
Interchange
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 14 Joey WalshInterchange for Warriors is number 14 Te Maire Martin
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 15 Caleb NavaleInterchange for Warriors is number 15 Eddie Ieremia-Toeava
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 16 Ethan BullemorInterchange for Warriors is number 16 Demitric Vaimauga
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Interchange for Sea Eagles is number 18 Aaron SchouppInterchange for Warriors is number 17 Leka Halasima
Reserves
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Replacement for Sea Eagles is number 21 Simione LaiafiReplacement for Warriors is number 18 Taine Tuaupiki
Match Officials
- Referee: Todd Smith
- Touch Judge: Kasey Badger
- Senior Review Official: Chris Butler
Last updated:
Egan will now play his 150th game in the Warriors’ week one finals game next week.
Head coach Andrew Webster has made only one other change to the listed 17 with prop Tanner Stowers-Smith this week named in the starting lineup after being swapped in later off the interchange in the last two matches.
The 21-year-old clocked 41 minutes in two stints in the 32-18 win over the Titans and 39 minutes in a double shift in last week’s 22-26 defeat by Parramatta.
Webster has named the same backline for the third week since centre Rocco Berry made his return.
The Warriors still have a chance of playing their way back into the top four but that will hinge on the outcome of tonight’s encounter between the Broncos and the Storm at Suncorp Stadium.
A Brisbane victory would end the Warriors’ hopes but if the Storm win it will be game on when they face the Sea Eagles in a contest the home side will also be desperate to take out.
The Warriors have reached the finals for the second time in three years, the club’s best achievement since making the top eight in 2010-2011 with only a one-off appearance in the finals in 2018 in the intervening years.
Adam Pompey, Marata Niukore, Leka Halasima and Erin Clark are on target to complete the feat of playing in each of the Warriors’ 24 regular season games with Pompey having been on the field for all 1842 minutes.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Halasima and Pompey are in a tight race to be the team’s leading try scorer. Tuivasa-Sheck moved to 12 from 17 games with his try last week while Halasima also has 12 following his double with Pompey on 11 after his try (and he would have been on 12, too, but for his second would-be match-winning try being ruled out).
While the Warriors sit sixth on 34 points with 14 wins and nine losses, the Sea Eagles (11 wins, 12 losses) are two points behind the eighth-placed Roosters but with a vastly inferior points for and against differential of plus 20 points compared to the Roosters’ plus 102.
When the two teams met in Auckland in round two, the Warriors won 36-16.
