The Warriors were unable to celebrate Andrew McFadden’s permanent appointment with a win, being tipped over by the table-topping Bulldogs in Hamilton today.
The 16-12 defeat brought to a close the Warriors’ brief winning streak and extended the Bulldogs’ stretch of seven straight victories.
Having produced enough in a pair of wins to shed the interim tag, McFadden had his side threatening an upset in the opening stages. But the respective sides’ positions on the ladder eventually showed, with a professional second-half performance enabling the Bulldogs to survive a furious finish.
The loss left the Warriors in the competition’s bottom five and ended a spell of positivity that saw McFadden earn a contract extension through the end of the 2017 season.
There were still signs in the display that the Warriors could pull themselves into playoff contention as the campaign progresses, particularly in an opening quarter that produced their first try.
But the Bulldogs’ defence - the best in the NRL - proved too tough for the Warriors to crack, and they would have wanted more points from their early ascendancy. While they were undoubtedly happy with their narrow lead at the halftime break, the Warriors’ dominance should have established greater control.
They seized the initiative from the opening whistle, holding their own against the Bulldogs’ fearsome forward pack and putting pressure on their line defence. The Warriors were completing their sets and forcing the Bulldogs to spend significant time in their own 20, soon finding reward when Ben Matulino crashed over.
But, having played flawless football in the opening 20 minutes, mistakes began to creep into the Warriors’ game as the Bulldogs took charge. Simple errors from Simon Mannering and Sione Lousi put their side under the pump and, after completing their first 11 sets, the Warriors failed to do so in four of their next six.
Only their scrambling defence was keeping out Canterbury - until the half hour mark when a cut-out pass from Sam Kasiano enabled Mitch Brown to cross in the corner. The Warriors were clearly starting to tire due to the increased work load on defence, but they hung onto their lead heading into the second spell.
The break did nothing to turn the tide, though, and it was only a matter of minutes before James Graham was put through a hole by Trent Hodkinson. And the Bulldogs’ quality again shone through as they opened an eight-point gap, with Greg Eastwood the benefactor of a thrilling last-tackle play.
The Warriors were struggling to get out of their own half, beginning their sets near their line and failing to advance through the Canterbury pack. But a break down the left from Manu Vatuvei seemed to be the catalyst for the Warriors coming back into the contest and, as the clock wound down, the Bulldogs were having to do their most defending since the early stages.
A late salvo brought a try to Ben Henry and a stunning break from Shaun Johnson almost completed the comeback, but the Bulldogs barely held on.
