Warriors playmaker Shaun Johnson made good his intention to get more involved as he helped to guide his NRL side to a 35-18 win over North Queensland in Auckland.
Johnson was a key figure as the Warriors stormed out to an early 16-0 lead, held off a Cowboys comeback and then kicked away to an ultimately comfortable victory on Sunday.
He created two of his side’s six tries with big breaks and his general play helped to maintain the pressure that allowed the home side to pull away at the end.
Johnson admits the Warriors’ tough 20-19 defeat to Cronulla in their previous match, when the Sharks chased down an 11-point deficit in the last 12 minutes, had left him dejected.
He had wanted to be a player who stood up for his team and he “took it pretty hard” when he didn’t do that.
While that defeat wasn’t on his mind when he faced the Cowboys, he was happy he had learned from the experience.
He went out wanting to be competitive for the full 80 minutes, and believed he achieved that, particularly during the tense stretch after the Cowboys closed the gap to 22-18.
“There was a period in the second half where we needed someone to take control with the kicks and just settle things down and I felt I did that,” the 21-year-old halfback said.
“It’s certainly something I can build on.”