2009 New Zealand Warriors season

2009 New Zealand Warriors season
NRL Rank14th
2009 recordWins: 7; draws: 2; losses: 14
Points scoredFor: 377; against: 515
Team information
CEOWayne Scurrah
CoachIvan Cleary
Assistant coachJohn Ackland
Captains
StadiumMt Smart Stadium
Avg. attendance15,486
Top scorers
TriesManu Vatuvei (13)
GoalsKevin Locke (22)
PointsKevin Locke (60)
← 2008 2010 →

The 2009 New Zealand Warriors season was the 15th in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2009 Telstra Premiership and finished 14th (out of 16). The coach of the Warriors was Ivan Cleary while Steve Price was the team's captain. In 2009 Warriors games were broadcast on New Zealand's Sky network averaged 107,163 viewers.[1]

Milestones

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  • 14 March – Round One: Steve Price played in his 300th National Rugby League game.
  • 14 March – Round One: Four players made their debuts for the Warriors; Denan Kemp, Joel Moon, Jacob Lillyman & Leeson Ah Mau. Ah Mau also made his first grade debut.
  • 22 March – Round Two: Two players made their debuts for the Warriors; Jesse Royal & Ukuma Ta'ai. Ta'ai also made his first grade debut.
  • 5 April – Round Four: Game dedicated to the memory of Sonny Fai, the Warriors lose to the South Sydney Rabbitohs 22–16.
  • 5 April – Round Four: Nathan Fien played in his 100th game for the Warriors.
  • 5 April – Round Four: Daniel O'Regan made his first grade debut, becoming Warrior #150.
  • 3 May – Round Eight: Lewis Brown made his first grade debut.
  • 17 May – Round Ten: Jerome Ropati played in his 100th National Rugby League game and 100th game for the club.
  • 31 May – Round Twelve: Two players made their first grade debuts; Kevin Locke and Aaron Heremaia.
  • 12 June – Round Fourteen: Stacey Jones played in his 250th game for the club.
  • 19 July – Round Nineteen: Isaac John made his first grade debut.
  • 26 July – Round Twenty: Patrick Ah Van played in his 50th National Rugby League game and 50th game for the club.
  • 31 July – Round Twenty One: Evarn Tuimavave played in his 100th National Rugby League game and 100th game for the club. It was also Tuimavave's first game of the season.
  • 15 August – Round Twenty Three: Siuatonga Likiliki made his first grade debut.
  • 5 September – Round Twenty Six: Simon Mannering played in his 100th National Rugby League game and 100th game for the club.
  • 5 September – Round Twenty Six: Stacey Jones played in his last game for the club, the Warriors lost to the Melbourne Storm 30–0.

Jersey and sponsors

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The Warriors used a New Jersey design in 2009, produced by Canterbury of New Zealand. Previously Puma AG had supplied the Warriors with apparel. The jerseys were unveiled on 25 February.[2] The Main jersey retained the Black & White colours of the previous jersey, with a reversed scheme for the away jersey. The Warriors used a Blue jersey for the "Heritage round" in Round 10, to represent the Auckland. The Heritage jersey was also worn in Round 12, to celebrate the centenary of the Auckland Rugby League, and in Rounds 24 and 25.

Vodafone New Zealand was again the naming rights sponsor of the Warriors in 2009. Lion Red was the sleeve sponsor. Suzuki and HiFX were featured on the shorts while Loadlift was on the back of the jersey. Other major sponsors included ZM and Flava.

Fixtures

[edit]
See also: List of New Zealand Warriors results

The Warriors used Mt Smart Stadium as their home ground in 2009, their only home ground since they entered the competition in 1995.

Trial Matches

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Date Round Opponent Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
12 February Trial 1 Melbourne Storm Waikato Stadium, Hamilton Win 24 – 12 McKinnon, Kirk, O'Regan, Vatuvei Kemp (3), Ah Van 10,800 [1]
22 February Trial 2 North Queensland Cowboys North Harbour Stadium, Auckland Win 32 – 28 Ah Van, Moon, Hohaia,
Solomona, Brown, Vatuvei		 Kemp (2), Moon (2) 16,500 [2]
28 February Trial 3 Gold Coast Titans Oakes Oval, Lismore Win 34 – 12 Kemp (2), McKinnon (2), Tate, Rapira, Moon Kemp (2), Moon 5,117 [3]

Regular season

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Date Round Opponent Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
14 March Round 1 Parramatta Eels Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Win 26 – 18 Hohaia (2), Moon, Packer Kemp (5) 20,102[3] [4][permanent dead link‍]
22 March Round 2 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Brookvale Oval, Sydney Win 26 – 24 Tate (2), Vatuvei, Royal,
Ropati		 Kemp (3) 16,307 [5][permanent dead link‍]
28 March Round 3 Brisbane Broncos Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 10 – 26 Mannering, Ta'ai Kemp (1) 24,350 [6][permanent dead link‍]
5 April Round 4 South Sydney Rabbitohs Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 16 – 22 Kirk, Luck, McKinnon Kemp (2) 19,386 [7][permanent dead link‍]
12 April Round 5 Newcastle Knights EnergyAustralia Stadium, Newcastle Loss 22 – 24 McKinnon, Fien, Packer,
Ah Van		 Kemp (3) 16,307 [8][permanent dead link‍]
19 April Round 6 Sydney Roosters Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Win (G.P.) 17 – 16 Jones, Ropati, Vatuvei Kemp (2), Jones (FG) 16,309 [9]
25 April Round 7 Melbourne Storm Olympic Park Stadium, Melbourne Draw (G.P.) 14 – 14 Vatuvei (2), Ah Van Kemp (1) 15,200 [10][permanent dead link‍]
3 May Round 8 St George Illawarra Dragons WIN Stadium, Wollongong Loss 11 – 12 Ah Van, Ropati Ah Van (1), Jones (FG) 14,562 [11][permanent dead link‍]
Round 9 Bye –
17 May Round 10 North Queensland Cowboys Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 12 – 34 Fien, Kemp Kemp (2) 16,345 [12][permanent dead link‍]
24 May Round 11 Canberra Raiders Canberra Stadium, Canberra Loss 12 – 38 Price, Mannering Kemp (2) 8,383 [13]
31 May Round 12 Wests Tigers Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Win 14 – 0 Locke (2), McKinnon Locke (1) 15,365 [14]
7 June Round 13 Cronulla Sharks Toyota Stadium, Sydney Loss 10 – 18 Vatuvei, Brown Locke (1) 14,082 [15]
13 June Round 14 Newcastle Knights Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Win 13 – 0 Hohaia, Locke Locke (2), Hohaia (FG) 14,255 [16]
Round 15 Bye –
27 June Round 16 Gold Coast Titans Skilled Park, Robina Loss 12 – 28 Hohaia, Brown Locke (2) 20,031 [17]
3 July Round 17 Brisbane Broncos Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Loss 14 – 28 Price (2) Locke (3) 32,456 [18]
12 July Round 18 Bulldogs Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 14 – 18 Vatuvei, Locke, Packer Locke (1) 11,802 [19][permanent dead link‍]
19 July Round 19 Sydney Roosters Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Win 30 – 24 Vatuvei (2), Ah Van,
Mannering, Jones		 Jones (3) 8,021 [20]
26 July Round 20 St George Illawarra Dragons Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 4 – 29 Moon 13,507 [21]
1 August Round 21 Penrith Panthers CUA Stadium, Sydney Draw (G.P.) 32 – 32 Moon (4), Brown Locke (6) 12,677 [22]
9 August Round 22 Gold Coast Titans Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 10 – 30 Vatuvei (2) Locke (1) 10,205 [23]
15 August Round 23 Parramatta Eels Parramatta Stadium, Sydney Loss 4 – 40 Vatuvei 12,627 [24]
23 August Round 24 Canberra Raiders Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Won 34 – 20 Hohaia (2), Heremaia,
Mannering, Ropati, Moon		 Locke (5) 8,812 [25]
30 August Round 25 Bulldogs ANZ Stadium, Sydney Loss 20 – 40 Vatuvei (2), Rapira (2) Jones (2) 41,835 [26]
5 September Round 26 Melbourne Storm Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland Loss 0 – 30 14,734 [27]

Ladder

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2009 NRL season
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1 St. George Illawarra Dragons 24 17 0 7 2 548 329 +219 38
2 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 24 18 0 6 2 575 428 +147 381
3 Gold Coast Titans 24 16 0 8 2 514 467 +47 36
4 Melbourne Storm 24 14 1 9 2 505 348 +157 33
5 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 24 14 0 10 2 549 459 +90 32
6 Brisbane Broncos 24 14 0 10 2 511 566 −55 32
7 Newcastle Knights 24 13 0 11 2 508 491 +17 30
8 Parramatta Eels 24 12 1 11 2 476 473 +3 29
9 Wests Tigers 24 12 0 12 2 558 483 +75 28
10 South Sydney Rabbitohs 24 11 1 12 2 566 549 +17 27
11 Penrith Panthers 24 11 1 12 2 515 589 −74 27
12 North Queensland Cowboys 24 11 0 13 2 558 474 +84 26
13 Canberra Raiders 24 9 0 15 2 489 520 −31 22
14 New Zealand Warriors 24 7 2 15 2 377 565 −188 20
15 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 24 5 0 19 2 359 568 −209 14
16 Sydney Roosters 24 5 0 19 2 382 681 −299 14

1 The Bulldogs were deducted 2 competition points after an interchange breach in Round 2.

Squad

[edit]
See also: List of New Zealand Warriors players

The Warriors used Twenty Nine players in 2009. Twelve players made their debut for the club, including eight making their National Rugby League debuts.

No. Name Nationality Position Warriors Debut App T G FG Pts
24 Stacey Jones New Zealand HB 23 April 1995 23 2 5 2 20
99 Lance Hohaia New Zealand UB 6 April 2002 20 6 0 1 25
102 Evarn Tuimavave New Zealand PR 1 September 2002 6 0 0 0 0
108 Jerome Ropati New Zealand CE / FE 31 August 2003 17 4 0 0 16
115 Manu Vatuvei New Zealand WG 23 May 2004 19 13 0 0 52
121 Steve Price Australia PR 13 March 2005 14 3 0 0 12
124 Nathan Fien New Zealand HK 13 March 2005 9 2 0 0 8
125 Simon Mannering New Zealand CE 26 June 2005 23 4 0 0 16
126 Micheal Luck Australia SR 12 March 2006 23 1 0 0 4
129 Patrick Ah Van New Zealand WG 9 April 2006 14 4 1 0 18
131 Sam Rapira New Zealand PR 20 May 2006 23 2 0 0 8
132 Wade McKinnon Australia FB 17 March 2007 21 4 0 0 16
136 Aidan Kirk Australia FB / CE 17 March 2008 5 1 0 0 4
137 Brent Tate Australia CE 17 March 2008 3 2 0 0 8
138 Ian Henderson Scotland HK 23 March 2008 22 0 0 0 0
141 Russell Packer New Zealand PR 4 May 2008 21 3 0 0 12
142 Ben Matulino New Zealand SR 14 June 2008 17 0 0 0 0
144 Denan Kemp Australia WG 14 March 2009 10 1 21 0 46
145 Joel Moon Australia FE 14 March 2009 23 7 0 0 28
146 Jacob Lillyman Australia PR 14 March 2009 24 0 0 0 0
147 Leeson Ah Mau New Zealand PR 14 March 2009 2 0 0 0 0
148 Jesse Royal New Zealand PR 22 March 2009 15 1 0 0 4
149 Ukuma Ta'ai Tonga SR 22 March 2009 10 1 0 0 4
150 Daniel O'Regan New Zealand FE 5 April 2009 1 0 0 0 0
151 Lewis Brown New Zealand HK 3 May 2009 15 3 0 0 12
152 Kevin Locke New Zealand FB 31 May 2009 12 4 22 0 60
153 Aaron Heremaia New Zealand HB 31 May 2009 11 1 0 0 4
154 Isaac John New Zealand FE 19 July 2009 3 0 0 0 0
155 Siuatonga Likiliki New Zealand CE 15 August 2009 1 0 0 0 0

Staff

[edit]
  • Chief Executive Officer: Wayne Scurrah

NRL Staff

[edit]
  • NRL Head Coach: Ivan Cleary
  • NRL Assistant Coach: John Ackland
  • NRL Head Trainer: Craig Walker
  • NRL Assistant Trainer: Dayne Norton
  • NRL Football Manager: Don Mann Jr
  • NRL Physiotherapist: Jude Spiers
  • Club Doctor: John Mayhew

NYC Staff

[edit]
  • NYC Head Coach: Tony Iro
  • NYC Assistant Coach: Frank Harold
  • NYC Team Manager: Dean Bell

Transfers

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Gains

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Stacey Jones: came out of retirement to play for the Warriors in 2009
Player Previous Club Length Notes
Liam Foran Melbourne Storm 2009, with option
Jacob Lillyman North Queensland Cowboys 2010 [4]
Denan Kemp Brisbane Broncos 2010 [5]
Joel Moon Brisbane Broncos 2011 [6]
Stacey Jones Retired 2009
Lewis Brown Wests Tigers 2009, with option
Jesse Royal Newcastle Knights 2010 [7]

Losses

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Player Club Notes
Ruben Wiki Retired [8]
Wairangi Koopu Melbourne Storm [9]
Logan Swann Retired [9]
Michael Crockett Released [8]
Ryan Shortland Released [8]
Grant Rovelli North Queensland Cowboys [10]
Sonny Fai presumed drowned [11]

Mid-Season Losses

[edit]
Player Club Notes
Epalahame Lauaki Hull
Michael Witt Otago Rugby Union
Liam Foran Newtown Jets [12]
Nathan Fien St. George Illawarra Dragons [13]

Contract extensions

[edit]

Sonny Fai

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Warrior Sonny Fai went missing at around 7pm on 4 January 2009, after being caught in a rip current while trying to save some family who had got into difficulty at Te Henga (Bethells Beach), Auckland. His body is yet to be found.[21][22] The entire team attended his two memorial services, one in a Samoan Methodist Church and one held at Te Henga (Bethells Beach).[23]

The Warriors wore black armbands for their opening NRL match of the 2009 season, as well as jerseys embroidered with Fai's signature and official team number in honour of him.[24]

End of Season awards

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Other Teams

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In 2009 the Junior Warriors again competed in the Toyota Cup while senior players who were not required for the first team played with the Auckland Vulcans in the NSW Cup. The Auckland Vulcans were coached by Bernie Perenara and finished 11th out of eleven teams.

Daniel O'Regan was the Vulcan's player of the year, while Pita Godinet was the runner up and Sione Tongia was the rookie of the year.[27]

2009 Junior Warriors

[edit]
See also: 2009 NRL Under-20s season

Siuatonga Likiliki was named in the 2009 Toyota Cup team of the year.[28]

National Youth Competition season 2009
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 24 19 1 4 2 879 417 +462 43
2 St. George Illawarra Dragons 24 19 0 5 2 758 461 +297 42
3 Melbourne Storm (P) 24 19 0 5 2 833 597 +236 42
4 Wests Tigers 24 15 1 8 2 709 588 +121 35
5 Brisbane Broncos 24 15 0 9 2 698 551 +147 34
6 South Sydney Rabbitohs 24 13 1 10 2 776 568 +208 31
7 New Zealand Warriors 24 13 1 10 2 725 612 +113 31
8 Canberra Raiders 24 11 2 11 2 706 685 +21 28
9 North Queensland Cowboys 24 12 0 12 2 668 683 -15 28
10 Newcastle Knights 24 9 1 14 2 596 756 -160 23
11 Canterbury Bulldogs 24 9 1 14 2 649 867 -218 23
12 Parramatta Eels 24 8 0 16 2 604 698 -94 20
13 Penrith Panthers 24 8 0 16 2 573 755 -182 20
14 Gold Coast Titans 24 8 0 16 2 542 738 -196 20
15 Sydney Roosters 24 6 0 18 2 443 736 -293 16
16 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 24 4 0 20 2 391 838 -447 12

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Kilgallon, Steve (10 April 2011). "Kiwi TV viewers go cold on rugby codes". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  2. ^ Vodafone Warriors 2009 – new year, new team, new look Archived 2 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine Warriors Official Site
  3. ^ Revised crowd number for Vodafone Warriors – Parramatta Eels NRL match Archived 2 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine Warriors Official Site
  4. ^ "Warriors sign Origin backrower". Stuff.co.nz. 19 June 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  5. ^ Vodafone Warriors Sign Brisbane Speedster Kemp for Two Years Archived 20 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine, 28 May 2008
  6. ^ "Moon rises as sun sets on top Warriors picks". Stuff.co.nz. 21 June 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  7. ^ "Warriors sign prop Jesse Royal". Television New Zealand. 16 February 2009. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  8. ^ a b c Brown, Michael (22 June 2008). "League: Warriors look to solve halves problem with Moon signing". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  9. ^ a b "Swann and Koopu to leave Warriors". Stuff.co.nz. 18 June 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  10. ^ Rovelli Heading Home to Link up with North Queensland for 2009 NRL season Archived 14 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine @ Warriors Official Site, 3 December 2008
  11. ^ "NZ Warrior presumed drowned". Stuff.co.nz. 5 January 2009. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  12. ^ Donaldson, Michael (14 June 2009). "Sir 'Lance-lot' the Warriors' saviour". The Sunday Star-Times. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  13. ^ "NRL: Fien targets regular role with Dragons". The New Zealand Herald. 1 July 2009. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  14. ^ "League: Mannering re-signs with Warriors". The New Zealand Herald. 15 February 2009. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  15. ^ Brown, Michael (29 March 2009). "NRL: Ropati extends contract to 2012". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  16. ^ Ropati to become 10-year Vodafone Warrior Archived 3 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine Warriors Official Site, 29 March 2009
  17. ^ Brown, Michael (12 April 2009). "NRL: Lance spearheads signings". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  18. ^ a b c Warriors re-sign three players Archived 14 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine AAP, 10 May 2009
  19. ^ Henderson re-signs with Warriors Archived 17 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine AAP, 14 May 2009
  20. ^ Warriors show faith in coach Cleary Archived 22 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine NRL.com, 4 June 2009
  21. ^ Warriors join search for talented prospect, missing after being caught in rip[permanent dead link‍] Glenn Jackson | 6 January 2009
  22. ^ Team-Mates and Club Officials help in search for Sonny Fai[permanent dead link‍] Warriors Official Site 5 January 2009
  23. ^ Remembering Sonny at Bethells Beach Archived 27 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine Warriors Official Site
  24. ^ "Steve Price to play 300th NRL match". NRL.com. 10 March 2009. Archived from the original on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  25. ^ "NRL: Luck earns top award". The New Zealand Herald. 11 September 2009. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  26. ^ Tackling machine Luck wins premier award Archived 13 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine Warriors.co.nz, 11 September 2009
  27. ^ November 2009 Newsletter Archived 20 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Auckland Rugby League
  28. ^ 2009 Toyota Cup Team of the Year Archived 4 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine NRL.com, 1 September 2009
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