The Warriors have slumped from grand finalists to the bottom half of the NRL ladder, but off-season recruit Nathan Friend insists there is no need to panic.
With three losses from the opening five rounds, the Warriors have slipped to 11th on the ladder and looked disjointed in Saturday night’s 26-8 loss to the Sydney Roosters.
Coach Brian McClennan admitted the Warriors poor completion rate, of just 63 per cent, was not good enough to win games – but hardworking hooker Friend is confident the errors can be easily eradicated to turn their season around.
“We just dropped the ball too much and shot ourselves in the foot unfortunately,” Friend said.
“They pressured us early and we just dropped the ball. We didn’t show our composure and if you don’t have the intensity in defence to want to stop them, they’re obviously going to score a few points.
“It’s not a great feeling, after winning at home last week we probably thought we could continue that this week, and yeah we expected to be (better placed after five rounds), but we are only five games in.
“We are continually improving and as long as we rectify and point out where we’re making those mistakes and if we can change it around, by the end of the year we’ll be right.”
One positive for the visitors was the strong return of Test prop Sam Rapira, who missed the opening rounds with a shoulder injury suffered in the pre-season trials.
Rapira came off the bench to good effort, making 31 tackles and 56 metres, further strengthening an already imposing Warriors pack.
The 24-year-old said he came through fine and said he would be fit to face Canberra next weekend, but warned he will take time to reach top gear.
“If I had any concerns (about the injury) I wouldn’t have played,” Rapira said.
“Once you put the jersey on you’ve got to do your job for the boys.
“When you do the trials and all that you’re starting from scratch, it usually only takes a couple of weeks to get your rhythm and hopefully it’s the same (for me).”
Rapira admitted he had felt pressure to return strongly having seen the likes of Sione Lousi and Ben Matulino take over his starting role.
“I think that’s what put a bit of pressure on myself, the way they’ve been playing,” he said.
“They’ve been outstanding and I’m just trying to carry on what they’ve been doing. It’s quite tough.”
