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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[Tookey 2.0]

I would keep Marata just not on the salary he’s currently getting. From a top five salary based player, I would move him down to 17. He provides nice versatility & will be a good interchange player

Unless he's fantastic off the field, I would have to say good bye to Niukore and his $850k price tag.

He's experienced, but I don't see him ever playing like an experienced player. Defensively has issues, and struggles to make a dent on attack. His first year he managed to have a few barnstorming games where he made 150m, however over the last 2 years he's passed 100m just 6 times, and hasn't gone past 110m. At the time he was signed, he looked like he had the potential to be an elite edge, however I think we can put that down as a massively failed experiment.

Pretty mad to me that we could get rid of Marata and Berry or Ali, and end up with Moale and Herbie Farnworth for roughly the same amount of money.

 

[WAH MAN]

Why do all you mummy's boys think you can't live in another country from mummy when you are 22?

I honestly don't reckon that's a factor for most 22 year olds.

Lacking independent life skills

 

[Theking267]

Unless he's fantastic off the field, I would have to say good bye to Niukore and his $850k price tag.

He's experienced, but I don't see him ever playing like an experienced player. Defensively has issues, and struggles to make a dent on attack. His first year he managed to have a few barnstorming games where he made 150m, however over the last 2 years he's passed 100m just 6 times, and hasn't gone past 110m. At the time he was signed, he looked like he had the potential to be an elite edge, however I think we can put that down as a massively failed experiment.

Pretty mad to me that we could get rid of Marata and Berry or Ali, and end up with Moale and Herbie Farnworth for roughly the same amount of money.

I don’t think he’s been a failure 2 possible top for 4 finishes as a marquee player isn’t bad. I wouldn’t pay him marquee money but certainly he’s an upgrade on Tom Ale & Bunty

 

[Falcon]

Didn’t we say this at the start of this year? And the year before infact???

Deja Vu …. And no, he’s not a Warriors signing!

 

[Canonball]

And yet we have these fast young forwards coming through next year. Obviously Leka is really the only one with genuine back line off the mark pace, but the others will surprise opposition from the half way mark like EIT, and Gannon, for their size they would beat a lot NRL forwards in a race.

From what I have seen, the trouble with our fast backs in Reggies is that they have handling and defensive issues.

But if you go to the open market, the type of outside back the Warriors could afford will also come with defensive issues. Actually it is looking more and more like the same old problem, decent Australian backs not willing to come here in the first place.

Which leaves being patient and trying to turn someone like Kali into a tackling skilled player, which many forget takes years, if they ever get there.

I know people hate this suggestion, but it so obvious that they need to think before posting their but but buts.....

Here it comes.....drum roll....brrrrrr......the way the Warriors can add a superstar fast powerful explosive back to their side with Xfactor and insane footwork is to play Leka at Center.

Hush, I know I know, he has never played there, but consider, is it really harder to convert him with his set of skills (he can tackle he's a back row forward ffs) and he can learn to defend a three quarter line faster than it takes to find out if ANY of these Junior backs can catch and hold on to the bloody ball.

Do I personally want Leka at Center? no, not as a first choice, my first choice would be for Santa to make one with his elves on the NRL easy to sign star backs for not too much cap space magic tree.

If that is too hard to think outside the box about, then keep Fatialofa at Center in cup.....

But we never did it, we knew it was there and the Warriors said nah....lets make more forwards.

Which tells me we are all in on Berry and Leiataua and on them rides our future....they both better pull finger.....especially Ali, he had so much promise when he was training hard etc....but there is always this thing where these kids have a flash debut, have a try scoring return, then laze around in Cup like they cannot be arsed because they want NRL now....

100% would play Leka at Centre... or Fatialofa ... I reckon the squad balance is starting to look alright though ... and if we get Ali back consistently he can be our guy, we'd have that sort of strike either side all of the time, I think we forget how freakish he looked on attack too