Vodafone Warriors 2012 Season Preview

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In all the pundits minds, the successes of 2011 were quite a suprise. The Vodafone Warriors seemed to fly under the radar for the majority of the season (kicked off by a dreadful performance against the Eels at Eden Park), until in the later stages of the 2011 calendar, a fire was ignited and some of their combinations and individual players started firing. The introduction of Shaun Johnson in the halves could have been a catalyst for this, but it's more likely that, after announcing his departure from the club, the players put it all on the line for club stalwart Ivan Cleary in a fitting recognition of his contribution to the team and Warriors organsisation.

With Cleary's departure, the path was opened for Brian 'Bluey' McClennan to step in and take the helm. Having had a successful period with both the Kiwis and the Leeds Rhinos, McClennan will have a certain level of familiarity with his squad. Copeing with the rigours of the NRL, touted by many as the toughest sporting competition on the planet, will be quite a different prospect than both the Northern Hemisphere championship as well as the concentrated international season.

Although the Warriors have lost a number of key, experienced players from this years roster (Hohaia, Seymour, Berrigan to name a few), veteran Nathan Friend is the only new player of note. His experience will be vital, especially with such a young side under a new coach. Shaun Johnson was without doubt the find of 2011 and McClennan will be hopeing for more of the same from this young star. An injurt-free season from Big Manu will hopefully be on the cards, and fans will be hopeing for more consistency from the magical Feleti Mateo. One player with big wraps on him is young centre Konrad Hurrell who steps up from the champion Under 20's.

The lack of forward grunt will be a concern for the Warriors in 2012 and although the talent is there, the 2012 squad is looking a little light on experience to challenge for the title. We'd expect a top 8 finish from the Warriors nevertheless, and our prediction for the 2012 Warriors will be 6th place.

For all the Vodafone Warriors 2012 rugby league games, please refer to the event listings below. Please note that these are the match details for the Vodafone Warriors New Zealand-based fixtures for 2012.

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