Warriors let Dolphins playoff clash slip from grasp
The Dolphins have silenced a raucous crowd at Go Media Stadium to take their place in a preliminary final, beating the Warriors 26-16 in a qualifying final comeback victory.
In a stop-start game full of penalty goals, sin bins and scuffles, it was the Dolphins outlasting the home side through their resilience in the face of enormous pressure,
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The Phins trailed 12-8 at half-time after ill-discipline prevented them from having any meaningful possession and the game looked to be going a similar way in the second half as the Warriors added two penalty goals to lead by eight 16-8 after 52 minutes.
All points for the home side came from a try and converstion by Taine Tuaupiki plus firom-from-five penalty goals.
However he was modest about his efforts.
"I didn't really think about it. It's just my job, kick the goals do whatever I can for the team.
The Warriors also had discipline issues with both Adam Pompey and Kurt Capewell binned in the later stages of the first half.
The game shifted as Isaiya Katoa took control of the game, turning the big Warriors forwards with his exceptional long kicking game, and from there the game opened up for Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Herbie Farnworth to do the damage, sparking open field play to help the Dolphins run away with it.
One birght spot for the Warriors was the return of Jackson Ford off the bench who had a solid impact on the game, however the was a sad scene of Leka Halasima been scrubbed from the side in the warm up with a right leg injury.
Hamiso Tabuai-Fido and Jack Bostock scored late tries to take the game away from the Warriors who now face Newcastle next weekend in a do-or-die clash.
