Warriors (NRL)
The Warriors are coached by Andrew Webster with the captaincy position presently being vacant, after previous captain Tohu Harris announced his retirement in January 2025.For the 1995 season the newly formed Auckland Warriors became the first club from outside Australia to be admitted to the Australian Rugby League's premiership when it expanded from 16 to 20 teams.Their first finals appearance was sealed with a bruising 24–24 draw with the Melbourne Storm at Colonial Stadium, but the effects of this match were seen a week later, as the Warriors were beaten by 30–18 at home by the Cowboys, a win that saw the North Queenslanders avoiding the wooden spoon.The Warriors trailed 2–6 at half time, but took a lead just after halftime when Jones scored a great grand final try – as he left defenders sprawling in his wake on a 40-metre run to the try line.The Roosters ran away with the match in the final 20 minutes after captain Brad Fittler was involved in a head clash with Warriors prop Richard Villasanti.After blowing an early 16–0 lead to lose 26–36 to the Newcastle Knights in Round 1, the Warriors embarked on a five-match winning streak to announce themselves as contenders for the season.These were proved wrong, as the Warriors managed to only win six games to finish equal last, only escaping the wooden spoon by having a superior points differential to the South Sydney Rabbitohs.His assistant Tony Kemp was given the head coach position, and in his first game in charge the Warriors recorded an emotional 20–14 win over Canberra.With the four-point deduction, the Warriors won their first NRL game away from Auckland, with a 26–10 victory over the reigning premiers, the Wests Tigers, at Jade Stadium in Christchurch.The Warriors, by virtue of finishing the regular season in fourth place, won the right to host one of the finals matches in the first week of the playoffs.Almost as if using the occurrence as an inhibitor, the Warriors had a very disappointing year, despite winning the opening two rounds against eventual grand finalists Parramatta Eels 26–18 and reigning premiers Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.The Warriors bolstered their playing stocks in the pivotal play-making positions by signing Brett Seymour after he was cut by Cronulla and James Maloney from Melbourne.Other results went the Warriors way and they were fortunate to progress to week two of the finals where they would meet a high flying Wests Tigers who had completed their 9th straight victory.Unfortunately Maloney missed both conversions which could have taken the score to 18–14 and a grandstand finish, but a try to Manly captain Jamie Lyon with only a minute remaining put the result beyond doubt as the Warriors were beaten by a clinical Manly outfit 24–10 – yet their effort in reaching just their second ever Grand Final (and their first in nine years) was a triumph for the club and departing coach Ivan Cleary and won praise from those in the NRL.A new coach with a successful track record in Brian 'Bluey' McClennan, a stable squad and strong public support indicated that 2012 could have been the year they finally broke their premiership duck.The season again kicked off with a home game at Eden Park, with a strong crowd of 37,502 witnessing the Warriors go down 20–26 to Manly in a grand final rematch.Warriors ended the season with eight consecutive loses after Shaun Johnson broke his ankle while scoring a try against Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in Round 20.The Warriors beat the Newcastle Knights 40–18 to record their first win of the season and then defeated the Sydney Roosters in a Golden Point thriller in Gosford a week later.Significantly it also included veteran journeyman playmaker Blake Green, along with Agnatius Paasi, Leivaha Pulu, Anthony Gelling & Karl Lawton.They ended up finishing 8th, but only two competition points out of 4th in one of the closest top 8's in NRL History, they played Penrith Panthers in an elimination final on Saturday 8 September at Stadium Australia.As a consequence the Warriors-based themselves in the Northern New South Wales town of Kingscliff and moved their round 2 game on 21 March against the Canberra Raiders to Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.[12][13] When the competition resumed, the Warriors started their new campaign on a perfect note, in a memorable 18–0 win over St. George Illawarra at their temporary home at Central Coast Stadium.Unfortunately for the Warriors, it would be another year where they didn't make the finals, as they had a seven-game losing streak between Rounds 12 to 19 and lost their last three games, including a 44–0 loss to the Gold Coast which was labeled as their worst performance of the season.The team started the year 3-1, which featured victories over the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville, ending the longest away losing streak in club history, as well as the second biggest comeback in club history, defeating the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 32-30 after trailing 26-6 in the first half, which would win the Halberg Awards (which recognizes New Zealand's top sporting achievements) "Favorite Sporting Moment" for 2023.With several "contentious" calls in each of the three games, as well as the amount of travel required in a short period, One New Zealand CEO, Jason Paris, took to Twitter to voice frustrations with the NRL and its referees, saying "Are you kidding me?The team faced the Penrith Panthers in the week one qualifying final, missing halfback Shaun Johnson through injury, they went on to lose the match 32-6, in Sydney.In the Preliminary Final in Brisbane against the Broncos, the team was competitive the first half, going into the break 24-12, a score which could have been 24-18 if not for 3 consecutive missed conversion attempts.Entering the season with some of the highest expectations in the history of the club, after finishing one game short of the Grand Final the year prior, bolstered by the return of former Dally M Medalist, and club captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck from Rugby Union, and Origin representative Kurt Capewell from the Brisbane Broncos, the season would take a hit early with Addin Fonua-Blake requesting an immediate release to return to Australia.In August 2022, during a Members-Only meeting with CEO Cameron George, Owner Mark Robinson, Coach Stacey Jones, and Captain Tohu Harris.On March 28 2024, NRL CEO Andrew Abdo announced the Warriors would rejoin the NRLW, along with a Canterbury Bulldogs team, in an expanded 12-team competition from 2025.
Mount Smart StadiumAucklandKen ReinsfieldAndrew WebsterNRL Men's Premiership2024 seasonCurrent seasonMinor premiershipsWooden spoonsSimon ManneringManu VatuveiShaun Johnsonrugby leagueNew ZealandNational Rugby LeagueTohu HarrisPenrose1995 seasonAustralian Rugby LeagueSuper League warSuper League competition of 1997grand finalsNew Zealand Rugby LeagueAmco CupEastern Suburbs RoostersNew South Wales Rugby LeagueMount AlbertAuckland Rugby LeagueDB BitterJohn MonieGreg AlexanderAndy PlattDean BellJohn KirwanMarc EllisBrisbane Broncos1995 ARL season2011 NRL seasonEden ParkWestern SuburbsStacey JonesParramatta EelsAuckland WarriorsPhil BlakeSean HoppeManoa ThompsonWhetu TaewaGene NgamuGavin HillDuane MannHitro OkeseneStephen KearneyTony TatupuTony TuimavaveSe'e SolomonaTea RopatiJason MackieMartin MoanaAustralian Rugby League season 1996Super LeagueFrank Endacottfirst seasonMark GrahamGraham LoweTainuiNational Rugby League season 2000St. George IllawarraWollongongEric WatsonDaniel AndersonMick WatsonNational Rugby League season 2001BulldogsCronullaSydney RoostersMelbourne StormColonial StadiumNational Rugby League season 2002Minor PremiershipCanberra RaidersCronulla SharksStadium AustraliaVodafone New ZealandBrad FittlerRichard VillasantiNewcastle KnightsNorth Queensland CowboysFrancis MeliPenrith PanthersHenry Fa'afiliNational Rugby League season 2004South Sydney RabbitohsTony KempChristchurchWests TigersSteve PriceRuben WikiNathan FienTodd ByrneCatalans DragonsBrookvale OvalIvan ClearyJade StadiumMelbourneOlympic Park StadiumJerome RopatiGrant RovelliPatrick Ah VanGeorge GatisAuckland LionsCanterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs2007 seasonToyota ParkPenrith StadiumAustralian KangaroosBrent TateBen MatulinoEvarn Tuimavave2008 NRL seasonWade McKinnonSteve Price (rugby league, born 1974)Michael WittParramatta StadiumCameron SmithManly Warringah Sea EaglesSonny Fai