Final chapter of longest and most successful season

Today's State Championship final capped what will go down as the longest, biggest, busiest and most successful season in the One New Zealand Warriors’ 30-year history.

Longest because it started on February 2 when the Harold Matthews Cup (under-17) and SG Ball Cup (under-19) sides began their campaigns and ended 245 days (or eight months and three days) later with the Warriors beating the Burleigh Bears at Accor Stadium.

Biggest because more teams – six – have been fielded than ever before following the return of the NRLW side alongside the NRL, New South Wales Cup, Jersey Flegg Cup, SG Ball and Harold Matthews squads.

Busiest because today’s final was the 108th game in total played by the six teams including no fewer than 60 away matches in Australia plus the long-distance haul to Las Vegas for the opening round of the NRL season.

And most successful because it has delivered an unprecedented three major titles in the same season through the New South Wales Cup and Harold Matthews Cup premierships and now the NRL State Championship along with the first NSW Cup minor premiership and an NRL finals berth for the second time in three seasons.

The Warriors’ six teams accumulated a combined 62 wins from 108 games (57 per cent success rate) with five draws and 41 losses while scoring an aggregate 2643 points and conceding 2273.

A total of 29 players were used in 25 matches in the NRL, 26 in 12 games in the NRLW, 36 in 28 in the NSW Cup/State Championship, 45 in 24 in the Jersey Flegg, 28 in nine in the SG Ball and 28 in 11 games in the Harold Matthews.

Of the 61 matches outside New Zealand, 43 were played in greater Sydney, five in Newcastle, five in Wollongong, three in Brisbane, two in Melbourne and one each in Lautoka, Robina and Las Vegas.