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	Rocco Berry	✔	✔
5	Tanah Boyd	✔	✔
6	Kurt Capewell	✔	✔
7	Erin Clark	✔	✔	✔
8	Jett Cleary	✔	S	S
9	Wayde Egan	✔	✔	✔
10	James Fisher-Harris	✔	✔	✔	✔
11	Jackson Ford	✔	✔	✔
12	Leka Halasima	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
13	Morgan Harper	✔
14	Chanel Harris-Tavita	✔	✔
15	Sam Healey	✔	✔	✔
16	Edward Kosi	✔
17	Jacob Laban	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
18	Ali Leiataua	✔	✔	✔
19	Jye Linnane	✔	✔	✔	✔
20	Freddy Lussick	✔	✔
21	Te Maire Martin	✔	✔
22	Luke Metcalf	✔	✔
23	Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad	✔	✔	✔
24	Marata Niukore	✔	✔
25	Adam Pompey	✔	✔	✔
26	Tanner Stowers-Smith	✔	✔	✔
27	Taine Tuaupiki	✔	✔
28	Roger Tuivasa-Sheck	✔	✔
29	Demitric Vaimauga	✔	✔	✔	✔
30	Dallin Watene-Zelezniak	✔	✔	✔
S1	Kayliss Fatialofa	S	✔	✔
S2	Kalani Going	S
S3	Luke Hanson	S
S4	Eddie Ieremia-Toeava	S	✔	✔
S5	Sio Kali	S
S6	Patrick Moimoi	S
-	Kahu Capper	T	T
-	Morgan Gannon	-	✔	✔	✔
-	Haizyn Mellars	✔	✔	✔
-	Motu Pasikala	T	?	?

C = Club option, M = Mutual option, P = Player option, S = Supplementary contract, T = Train & Trial contract

Top 30 2026: 29/30
Supplementary 2026: 1/6

2026 Gains: Morgan Gannon (Leeds Rhinos), Haizyn Mellars (South Sydney Rabbitohs)
2026 Losses: Edward Kosi (South Sydney Rabbitohs)

Off Contract: Bunty Afoa, Tom Ale, Morgan Harper
Can negotiate with other clubs from Nov 1, 2025 (Entering final year) : Rocco Berry, Tanah Boyd, Kurt Capewell, Chanel Harris-Tavita, Freddy Lussick, Te Maire Martin, Luke Metcalf, Marata Niukore, Taine Tuaupiki, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck

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[Tokyo Warrior]

You would have to keep the 200k unspent anyway in that scenario. Just pay the man his million!

 

[BangBro's (still banging)]

Validity of club interest isn’t the point, it’s what Metcalf is worth as the top dog half on the open market come November. What do you think we need to offer to keep him?

700k a season and 100k bonus per game played past 20 games

 

[Tookey 2.0]

700k a season and 100k bonus per game played past 20 games

And when Metcalf is finished laughing and then signs with someone else, what's our plans for 2027?

 

[Wrighty]

Gotta be a second rower, great pace, fend, very explosive, surely it's a waste to have him running into brick walls all day. Hopefully they are just toughening him up in the middle and soon witch him to the edge.

Crosby? Will be interesting to see if they move him to 2RF next year. I always assumed lock was his calling.

 

[Wrighty]

I think as much as Mr B is a forum heavyweight I respectfully disagree on paying Metcalf anywhere close to $1M based on how injury prone he is. Had he remained uninjured this season and led us into the top four then sure pay him $1M. But he didn't last the season. And I would say 90% of the forum would probably predict he won't get through next season or any other full season.

 

[Warriorsfan92]

I think as much as Mr B is a forum heavyweight I respectfully disagree on paying Metcalf anywhere close to $1M based on how injury prone he is. Had he remained uninjured this season and led us into the top four then sure pay him $1M. But he didn't last the season. And I would say 90% of the forum would probably predict he won't get through next season or any other full season.

It was a freak injury, ACL injuries aren’t due to being ‘injury prone’. On that premise, would you not re sign Barnett, since he got the same injury?

It’s evident how important Metcalf is to our premiership hopes.

 

[Wrighty]

It was a freak injury, ACL injuries aren’t due to being ‘injury prone’. On that premise, would you not re sign Barnett, since he got the same injury?

It’s evident how important Metcalf is to our premiership hopes.

He, Luke, has never made it through any NRL season while Barnett has made it through many seasons (ignoring suspensions)

 

[Warriorsfan92]

He, Luke, has never made it through any NRL season while Barnett has made it through many seasons (ignoring suspensions)

Sure, but his previous injuries had no relation with his ACL rupture, and he was on track, before the freak injury, to see out the season. No hammys, no shoulders, calves, nothing. Injury free until a one off freak injury. He’d already shown his body was resilient

 

[CWC]

Luke had quad issues and strapped up in the season ending game and Barney was playing SOO 3 days prior. Since then Cape was rested every post SOO game.

I think a million with bonuses tops, Linnane and Jett as plan B

 

[nzwarriorsfaithful]

Metcalf will be 27 by the time he steps foot on the field again and will have played 41 nrl games (Leka has already played more than half that) if you give him close to a million a season that’s borderline malpractice. He shouldn’t be getting anything over 700k and a 2 year deal.

 

[Wrighty]

Sure, but his previous injuries had no relation with his ACL rupture, and he was on track, before the freak injury, to see out the season. No hammys, no shoulders, calves, nothing. Injury free until a one off freak injury. He’d already shown his body was resilient

Of course his previous injuries are relevant as they were all injuries. That's what's being injury prone means. There is no common cause to the injuries for an injury prone player and all of them are down to bad luck but some players have bad luck and are "injury prone" nonetheless.

Here are some numbers and I don't expect these to carry the day as people on this web site don't rate stats but on other websites I have been on the stats I am about to post would be a smoking gun.

Warriors games with Luke Metcalf at Halfback 2025 season 15 games team average score 21.27
Warriors games with Tannah Boyd at Halfback 2025 season 4 games team average score 22.00

 

[Billyspleen75]

I just read that Metcalf/Rabbitohs article. I reckon that's an article arranged by his agent.
If that's right, then $1m is indeed what he and his agent are after.

 

[Noitall]

I just read that Metcalf/Rabbitohs article. I reckon that's an article arranged by his agent.
If that's right, then $1m is indeed what he and his agent are after.

Can understand him going for his payday now, as mentioned he will be 27 when he returns and hasn’t strung together a heap of games in that period. Risk comes with what’s offered after his injury history and the disruption to the season’s it’s occurred now must be a consideration too for the Warriors

 

[peewee]

I just read that Metcalf/Rabbitohs article. I reckon that's an article arranged by his agent.
If that's right, then $1m is indeed what he and his agent are after.

Let him go.

 

[Wrighty]

Let him go.

Bunnies will continue to be celler dwellers if they sign him.

 

[Wrighty]

I don't even see Metcalf fitting in at the Rabbitohs with Latrell and Wighton etc. He seems more like a Knights fit or Dragons.

 

[Boats n Hoes]

Metcalf will be 27 by the time he steps foot on the field again and will have played 41 nrl games (Leka has already played more than half that) if you give him close to a million a season that’s borderline malpractice. He shouldn’t be getting anything over 700k and a 2 year deal.

Just when someone convinces me he's worth a mill someone comes up with a pretty compelling arguement why he isnt......and thats a pretty compelling counter youve come up with fella.

Over to you @Mr. Brownstone

 

[Tookey 2.0]

Metcalf will be 27 by the time he steps foot on the field again and will have played 41 nrl games (Leka has already played more than half that) if you give him close to a million a season that’s borderline malpractice. He shouldn’t be getting anything over 700k and a 2 year deal.

Yeah I agree with what you're saying...on paper.

The reality is New Zealand has always struggled to produce decent halves, and struggled even more to sign quality, marquee level halves from Australia.

At some point, were going to have to gamble on a half. Metcalf has shown he has the skills and has been making huge strides towards where we want him to be as a game manager, and he's currently been here and invested in our systems.

Imo, the gamble here is about 2-300k. Metcalf will almost certainly be able to return home to Australia on 700k, and will have a few of the struggling clubs as options. We don't even know if Metcalf will stay if we offer him a mill, but for me having a potential top tier half from 2027-2029 whilst bringing our new crop of halves through.

Our only other options are to sign a mid tier half (or have someone like Tanah stay on), or start Jet/Linnane and co from 2027, with Chanel and/or Boyd our more experienced halves. I like those two options much less than risking giving Lukey the mill

 

[Wrighty]

Yeah I agree with what you're saying...on paper.

The reality is New Zealand has always struggled to produce decent halves, and struggled even more to sign quality, marquee level halves from Australia.

At some point, were going to have to gamble on a half. Metcalf has shown he has the skills and has been making huge strides towards where we want him to be as a game manager, and he's currently been here and invested in our systems.

Imo, the gamble here is about 2-300k. Metcalf will almost certainly be able to return home to Australia on 700k, and will have a few of the struggling clubs as options. We don't even know if Metcalf will stay if we offer him a mill, but for me having a potential top tier half from 2027-2029 whilst bringing our new crop of halves through.

Our only other options are to sign a mid tier half (or have someone like Tanah stay on), or start Jet/Linnane and co from 2027, with Chanel and/or Boyd our more experienced halves. I like those two options much less than risking giving Lukey the mill

Mods can we temporarily run a poll

 

[Cces]

Warriors games with Luke Metcalf at Halfback 2025 season 15 games team average score 21.27
Warriors games with Tannah Boyd at Halfback 2025 season 4 games team average score 22.00

While not wrong, these numbers don't show that Metcalf played 7 of those 15 games (47%) against teams who currently sit inside the top 8, the side won 3 of these and scored an average of 19.7 points across the 7. Boyd has faced 1 current top 8 team (8th) and we only scored 18 points in a loss..

Retaining Metcalf is a must. CHT has grown on me enormously in the last 18 months but he is the last person you'd want to throw the ball to with the game in the balance, Jett Cleary has bottled multiple match clinching opportunities across the grades this year and Boyd can thank Halasima for saving our bacon in a clutch situation. Metcalf is a winner. Andrew Webster has won at 54% in the NRL since becoming coach, with Metcalf in the team that skyrockets to 68%.