The Warriors say they will channel the courage of Quentin Pongia when they take on Brisbane’s in-form pack in Auckland.

Former Kiwis prop Pongia died from cancer aged 48 over the weekend, prompting sadness at the club he represented in 1998, particularly among several coaching and managerial staff who played with him.

Coach Stephen Kearney and trainer Ruben Wiki were long-time club and international teammates, the latter sharing Pongia’s premiership triumph with Canberra in 1994.

Wiki addressed the players on Monday, enlightening them about what made Pongia such a respected figure.

Kearney said the words touched on Pongia’s team-first mentality.

It had resonance at a Warriors side boasting one of the smaller packs in the NRL and preparing to face a fearsome Broncos front unit on Saturday.

“Everyone will have a story of his toughness, there’s no doubt about that,” Kearney said.

“He wasn’t overly big, he wasn’t overly skilful but you knew if you were tackled by him, you thought he was a lot heavier than what he was.

“He elevated himself to the levels that he did just through sheer will and his competitive nature. It took a courageous character to be able to do that.”

Warriors will wear Pongia’s club number on their jersey in his honour.

Kearney’s men have have been susceptible against bigger packs this season, most notably in heavy losses to Manly and Newcastle.

Their hopes of matching the likes of Brisbane firebrands Payne Haas, Matt Lodge and Tevita Pangai Jr have been further weakened by the suspension handed to prop Agnatius Paasi.

The best-performed middle forward in last week’s 30-10 win over Penrith, Paasi has been dubbed the “alpha male” of the Kiwi club’s pack.

Kearney had faith in Bunty Afoa to fill the vacancy and that recalled veteran Adam Blair will shake off his early-season struggles via a bench role.