Warriors sweating on star's fitness as crunch clash awaits

The New Zealand Warriors have been handed mixed news on the injury front, in preparation for a tough trip to face the Melbourne Storm away from home.

As the Warriors opened their 2024 campaign with a 16-12 defeat to the Cronulla Sharks, coach Andrew Webster was left sweating as the pair of hooker Wayde Egan and second-rower Kurt Capewell were forced to manage injuries throughout the 80 minutes.

Egan, 26, played just 34 minutes due to an elbow injury, while Capewell was forced off the field for 11 minutes due to a rib complaint - but returned to play the final moments of the defeat.

On Tuesday, the pair were both named for Saturday’s round-two clash, as part of an unchanged starting side to take the field at AAMI Park.

However, speaking on Wednesday, Webster calmed any fears over Capewell, but says Egan still has work to do if he’s to be recover in time.

“Kurt’s not injured, he trained today,” said Webster. “Wayde, obviously everyone saw him go off.

“He ran on the sideline today. We don’t train tomorrow, we’ll do captain’s run before we leave.

“We’ll give him every chance up until kickoff. We’re really happy it’s not a long-term injury, it’s just whether he can get range in his elbow, then he can go.

“He’s got an old dodgy elbow from plenty of injuries to it and it’s flared up. We’re really happy long-term that it’ll be okay.

“If he can pass and tackle, he’ll play. If he can’t, he won’t.”

Should Egan be ruled out, the Warriors have no shortage of options.

As the only other specialist hooker in the Warriors’ first-grade squad, Freddy Lussick would likely line up at dummy half to face Melbourne from the kickoff.

Dylan Walker has been named in the No 17 jersey and would likely cover that role from the bench, having done so in his debut season with the club last year.

Meanwhile, Chanel Harris-Tavita has been named on an extended interchange bench and could also play a utility role at hooker, while also covering the halves.

While not his preferred position, Harris-Tavita is no stranger to hooker, having played there for Toa Samoa, notably during the 2022 Rugby League World Cup final.

But Webster isn’t prepared to detail any of his plans with Melbourne mastermind Craig Bellamy potentially listening in.

“We’ll keep that secret,” Webster added. “Melbourne are the best team I’ve seen at preparing for an opposition.

“I haven’t been behind closed doors, I just know heaps of people who’ve worked there who’ve told me they’ll do their homework.

“We’ll keep that to ourselves, so they’ll only find out on game day. Freddy is the obvious choice, but we’re really hopeful Wayde will play.”

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission