Recruitment Warriors 2025/2026 Recruitment & Retention

Warriors 2025/2026 Recruitment & Retention Discussion​

-	Player	2025	2026	2027	2028	2029
1	Bunty Afoa	✔
2	Tom Ale	✔
3	Mitchell Barnett	✔	✔	✔
4	The Greatest of All-Time	✔	✔
5	Kurt Capewell	✔	✔
6	Erin Clark	✔	✔	✔
7	Wayde Egan	✔	✔	✔
8	James Fisher-Harris	✔	✔	✔	✔
9	Jackson Ford	✔
10	Leka Halasima	✔	✔	✔
11	Tohu Harris	✔
12	Chanel Harris-Tavita	✔	M
13	Edward Kosi	✔
14	Jacob Laban	✔	✔
15	Ali Leiataua	✔
16	Freddy Lussick	✔	✔
17	Zyon Maiu’u	✔	✔
18	Te Maire Martin	✔
19	Luke Metcalf	✔	✔
20	Marcelo Montoya	✔
21	Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad	✔
22	Marata Niukore	✔	✔
23	Motu Pasikala	✔	✔	✔
24	Adam Pompey	✔
25	Demitric Sifakula	✔	C
26	Taine Tuaupiki	✔
27	Roger Tuivasa-Sheck	✔	✔
28	Dylan Walker	✔
29	Dallin Watene-Zelezniak	✔
D1	Kalani Going	D
D2	Tanner Stowers-Smith	D
T1	Jett Cleary	T	D	D

C = Club option, M = Mutual option, P = Player option, D = Development contract, T = Train & Trial contract

Confirmed Top 30 2025: 29/30
Confirmed Development 2025: 2/6
Unconfirmed Top 30 2025: 29/30
Unconfirmed Development 2025: 3/6 (Luke Hanson, per Zero Tackle)

Confirmed Top 30 2026: 13/30
Confirmed Development 2026: 1/6

2026 Gains: Nil
2026 Losses: Nil

Off Contract: Bunty Afoa, Tom Ale, Jackson Ford, Tohu Harris, Ed Kosi, Ali Leiataua, Te Maire Martin, Marcelo Montoya, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Adam Pompey, Taine Tuaupiki, Dylan Walker, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Kalani Going (D), Tanner Stowers-Smith (D), Chanel Harris-Tavita (M), Demitric Sifakula (C)

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[John Nick]

Wish him all the best. Always gave his all.
Works for him and us I reckon.

Loved his energy in ball returns

 

[MrFrankWhite]

Montoya

If this means RTS to his wing then we are one step closer to unlocking a decent team*

*not a dig against Monty. I was a fan of his.

 

[tajhay]

Is the current RTS a better winger than Montoya or are we just trying to fit RTS somewhere?

 

[Christchurch_Warrior]

Is the current RTS a better winger than Montoya or are we just trying to fit RTS somewhere?

I think that is most of the problem with RTS.

 

[Wellington Warrior]

Randoms posting on Facebook that Montoya's wife is pregnant with twins. Probably ends up being a mutual agreement to leave early.

Edit: checked her Instagram. Was announced a month ago that they are expecting twin girls. Already have a boy.

Double Edit: She's one of those annoying people that labels their dog as a "big brother"

Yeah she was a producer on the Hits and has finished working there so assume part of it could be wanting to be closer to family with twins about to pop.

 

[tajhay]

Yeah she was a producer on the Hits and has finished working there so assume part of it could be wanting to be closer to family with twins about to pop.

Marcelo and his wife have a podcast so im sure they will release content on reasons behimd their move.

 

[hornbybrown]

I wonder when Montoya was told. His performance in the last game was like someone with a bit of extra motivation.

Kind of like the efforts he had when he first arrived.

Yep, been saying it since he extended his contract here his effort wasn’t the same

 

[snake77]

There was an article last month on how well they had settled here. If she is pregnant moving back to Australia with a more family around probably suits them.

When he signed here it wasn't taken with a lot of enthusiasm. His form at the Bulldogs wasn't the best. He arrived and was putting in a lot of effort. We have often recruited and not got the best out of players or their form has regressed. This was a case of us getting some of his best football out of him.

A shame seeing him go but if the move makes us stronger than the club needs to do what is best.

Warriors star Marcelo Montoya: ‘We're so in love with NZ!'

The sport star and his wife reveal the "awesome" life they’ve built in Aotearoa.

www.nzherald.co.nz

 

[MrFrankWhite]

Is the current RTS a better winger than Montoya or are we just trying to fit RTS somewhere?

A little from column A, little from column B, and youve forgotten column C & D; frees up $$ and a roster spot

 

[Matiunz]

That scandal part is a bit ominous, makes me nervous and dread to think what's been going on this year that might come out.

What happened to our subscribers rumours page? Lol

 

[Matiunz]

Interesting Warriors instagram page has tributes to SJ and Jazz, but nothing for AFB yet

Let’s get DCE to teach him how to back flip

 

[Tookey 2.0]

I dunno, the talk about potentially moving on Montoya and Lussick seems like weak sauce imo.

Unless we're getting a top tier winger, I don't see the point of freeing up Montoya's contract unless it leads to us improving somewhere else. While Montoya isn't the best, realistically if we had a better player there this year it maybe would have resulted in 6 or 7 more tries scored/saved over what we had this year. So imo it doesn't really move the needle, so what's the point. Especially as we struggled big time with backs getting injured this year.

Same as Lussick - who may not even get on the field much nek year with Clarke here, so why make these big moves and causing change just for change's sake.

Our next few years were likely going to see the rise of key juniors like Ali, Halasima, Sifakula, Laban, Zyon Maiu’u and co, I'm not so sure moving on fringe players and replacing them with youth of no real note is a top idea. Hope I'm wrong!

 

[The Warrior Waka]

I mean, Kinda expected this news. Rts, Montz or Pomps.
Rts to me is not much better than Montz currently. Both are slow and look lost defending our tryline most of the time.
We don't gain pace with Rts. Montz is just way cheaper.
An import or Pasikala. No Taufa - Graham , Setu Tu or Kosi please.

Thanks for your service to the club Montz. Beast when you were on a mission.

 

[BigUCE]

I dunno, the talk about potentially moving on Montoya and Lussick seems like weak sauce imo.

Unless we're getting a top tier winger, I don't see the point of freeing up Montoya's contract unless it leads to us improving somewhere else. While Montoya isn't the best, realistically if we had a better player there this year it maybe would have resulted in 6 or 7 more tries scored/saved over what we had this year. So imo it doesn't really move the needle, so what's the point. Especially as we struggled big time with backs getting injured this year.

Same as Lussick - who may not even get on the field much nek year with Clarke here, so why make these big moves and causing change just for change's sake.

Our next few years were likely going to see the rise of key juniors like Ali, Halasima, Sifakula, Laban, Zyon Maiu’u and co, I'm not so sure moving on fringe players and replacing them with youth of no real note is a top idea. Hope I'm wrong!

You would think he would be using the compassionate grounds card so there’s not much the club can do in that circumstance

 

[Worried2Death]

I dunno, the talk about potentially moving on Montoya and Lussick seems like weak sauce imo.

Unless we're getting a top tier winger, I don't see the point of freeing up Montoya's contract unless it leads to us improving somewhere else. While Montoya isn't the best, realistically if we had a better player there this year it maybe would have resulted in 6 or 7 more tries scored/saved over what we had this year. So imo it doesn't really move the needle, so what's the point. Especially as we struggled big time with backs getting injured this year.

Same as Lussick - who may not even get on the field much nek year with Clarke here, so why make these big moves and causing change just for change's sake.

Our next few years were likely going to see the rise of key juniors like Ali, Halasima, Sifakula, Laban, Zyon Maiu’u and co, I'm not so sure moving on fringe players and replacing them with youth of no real note is a top idea. Hope I'm wrong!

I welcomed Monty's signing in the hope he'd bring some wheels after all the years of slowish propwings, but he doesn't really have the speed he showed as young gun at the Dogs, not sure if he lost it or never actually had it. Loved his brutal carries and D though. Hope we've signed an actual speedster to take his spot.

 

[John Nick]

Loved his energy in ball returns

 

[The Warrior Waka]

Come on down Shaun Stevenson!

 

[kos]

Just asked Bunty he's staying next season.

You saw him at Leichardt?
He confirmed he s staying?
How did he play today?

 

[John Nick]

You saw him at Leichardt?
He confirmed he s staying?
How did he play today?

See you Saturday

 

[kos]

See you Saturday

We will have a shouting match about Bunty.
And you can explain (sarcasm) the value of RTS to the team.