General Warriors Preseason 2026
- Thread starter WahsaurusRex
- Start date
CWC
🔍
Yikes. I've watched all five Warriors games so far this season and it's hard to overstate how poor the performances have been. From the Harold Matts and SG Ball through to last night's NRL trial, they've looked undercooked: slow, predictable, lacking in aggression, low on creativity, and less fit than the opposition. They also look, frankly, under-coached. Because the club has adopted Webster's philosophy and systems for alignment through the grades, the accountability starts with him. The current one-out, hit-it-up-the-middle tactics with minimal variation, risk, or ad-lib is brutal to watch, and it's showing up across the grades.
The frustrating part is that it's so clear that the game has moved on from that approach. Recent rule changes, including the tweaks this season, have opened matches up even further. Speed, support play, and off-the-cuff moments are now more dangerous than ever (as we've seen from other teams in both the trials and the junior grades), yet Webby seems to have retreated even further into conservatism. And for anyone arguing he's playing 4D chess and hiding some revolutionary attacking shape to unveil in Round 1, that's not how Webby has ever operated. The attack was bland and one-dimensional last season, and looked much the same in their initial hit-out. And yes, the Panthers and Storm also got hammered in their first trials. But they didn't field teams anywhere near as close to NRL standard as the Warriors did. Playing at home. In the wet. Against a combined NSW Cup/SG Ball team.
Webby may well be one of the NRL's best man-managers. The players clearly like him and management publicly backs him. That's a meaningful part of building a high-performance environment. But the serious question remains: can he actually coach this team to look consistently sharp and well-drilled? Honestly, aside from the heavily structured and well executed sweep plays in 2023, have Webster teams ever looked really well coached in the same way the Panthers do, or the Storm, Roosters, Raiders, and now the Bulldogs? I'm starting to wonder. The ultra-conservative game plan, embedded across the grades, plus the unwavering loyalty to players and coaches (assistant and lower grade) may end up being his fatal flaw.
I desperately want Webby to succeed here. I love his positivity, how he has embraced New Zealand, his drive to win. But he said something profound a while back that has stuck with me: you can’t win a premiership in the off-season, but you can lose one. Meaning, you can muck the pre-season up for the season ahead by focusing on the wrong things, not working hard enough, or pushing the squad too hard. I feel like something has happened here, one of the three has materialised. But I'm not sure which yet. If we see more of the same on Friday night, it's fair to ask whether this is a slow start or signs of a deeper issue manifesting.
The frustrating part is that it's so clear that the game has moved on from that approach. Recent rule changes, including the tweaks this season, have opened matches up even further. Speed, support play, and off-the-cuff moments are now more dangerous than ever (as we've seen from other teams in both the trials and the junior grades), yet Webby seems to have retreated even further into conservatism. And for anyone arguing he's playing 4D chess and hiding some revolutionary attacking shape to unveil in Round 1, that's not how Webby has ever operated. The attack was bland and one-dimensional last season, and looked much the same in their initial hit-out. And yes, the Panthers and Storm also got hammered in their first trials. But they didn't field teams anywhere near as close to NRL standard as the Warriors did. Playing at home. In the wet. Against a combined NSW Cup/SG Ball team.
Webby may well be one of the NRL's best man-managers. The players clearly like him and management publicly backs him. That's a meaningful part of building a high-performance environment. But the serious question remains: can he actually coach this team to look consistently sharp and well-drilled? Honestly, aside from the heavily structured and well executed sweep plays in 2023, have Webster teams ever looked really well coached in the same way the Panthers do, or the Storm, Roosters, Raiders, and now the Bulldogs? I'm starting to wonder. The ultra-conservative game plan, embedded across the grades, plus the unwavering loyalty to players and coaches (assistant and lower grade) may end up being his fatal flaw.
I desperately want Webby to succeed here. I love his positivity, how he has embraced New Zealand, his drive to win. But he said something profound a while back that has stuck with me: you can’t win a premiership in the off-season, but you can lose one. Meaning, you can muck the pre-season up for the season ahead by focusing on the wrong things, not working hard enough, or pushing the squad too hard. I feel like something has happened here, one of the three has materialised. But I'm not sure which yet. If we see more of the same on Friday night, it's fair to ask whether this is a slow start or signs of a deeper issue manifesting.
The NSW cup side last year played some pretty free flowing football and won the comp.
So I m hearing what you are saying but its way too early this year to make judgement
Let’s see how the first five first grade games go
So I m hearing what you are saying but its way too early this year to make judgement
Let’s see how the first five first grade games go
I think its worth waiting until the real season is underway before writing panic essays.
There's AKP! Drop ball.
I agree it is worrying. Without Metcalf and Barnett we’re pretty poor.
They should’ve been hungry yesterday to make up for the poor last 10 rounds of last year or at least excited to blow off the cob webs and put on a show for the fans. Or at least show some ego to not get shown up by a bunch of teenagers. But no just one out running then a bomb, camp down their end with nothing to show for it. Seriously what is webby looking for in a player? Who Evers most Hungus for contact by the looks of it.
Why should they have been hungry? It's a meaningless trial game.
What a dumb attitude to have.
How so? Tell me how a trial especially a first trial has any meaning for the first grade side? It's literally to get match fitness and play someone other than yourselves.
Ricky Stuart as an example hates them and would prefer not to have them. Each team treats them different and I think it was obvious for us we were just going through the motions, at least when the first grade team was on.
At least refute me instead of saying I have a dumb attitude.
I wasn’t referring to you, more so webby and the boys, if they’re happy to roll that out just because it’s a trial its a bad attitude to have.
How they played yesterday is the same shit they dished up the last 10 rounds of last year, slow, lethargic uninspiring stuff. You think they’re just gonna come round 1 and flip a switch, doubt it.
How does it matter? Because he named a first grade side and they were beaten by not even a nsw cup team. Which everyone seems to be fine with because it’s a trial
Teams do it every year.. Storm won 0 trials last year and it didn't affect them at all. Raiders were thrashed by 30 in their last one and got Minor Prem. It is what it is.I wasn’t referring to you, more so webby and the boys, if they’re happy to roll that out just because it’s a trial its a bad attitude to have.
How they played yesterday is the same shit they dished up the last 10 rounds of last year, slow, lethargic uninspiring stuff. You think they’re just gonna come round 1 and flip a switch, doubt it.
How does it matter? Because he named a first grade side and they were beaten by not even a nsw cup team. Which everyone seems to be fine with because it’s a trial
Difference is first grade side were just after match fitness and to not get injured whereas the Manly team were out to try get considered for first grade. They still had 8 or 9 of their top 30 playing
roguei
🔥
I disagree.
Harrold Matts:
If you think it's webby's fault that they are doing badly now. Surely you must also think winning the cup two times in a row is also his fault? Both of the most recent games were harsh losses but we seem to do a lot better away than at home (undefeated last year away), and have a more 50/50 record at home. Plus a lot of these sydney based clubs are able to play against each other in training. I'd at least wait on them playing an away game before thowing the 2 time premiers away like that.
SG CUP:
I would not be surprised by the SG cup results. We've came 13th last year, 12th in 2024. With pretty much the exact same start we've had this year. It's a side that has always struggled. I peronsally don't think there is much to read into here.
NRL Preseason side:
Would you have the same opinion of the roosters? Pretty much the exact same game we had. Couple of true first grades mixed in with exprenced 2nd strings losing to a bunch of nobodies. Arugbly the loss of the round was the dragons vs rabbitohs. With a full dragons side, 2nd preason in loses to a 2nd/3rd string rabbitohs side. A loss like the one we had is pretty ordinary. No real combinations between the players and in the wet. What im surprsied by is the real focus here on attack. If we landed the conversions it would of been 24 points. That is more than enough to win with. Now getting 33 scored on us is a lot more embarrassing.
Overall i'm just failing to see the correlation here on such a small sample size. And then the refusual to take into consideration the results of the past. Because surely if the accountablity starts with him. Then the credit for the wins must be as well.
Cces
🎯
Was it Cleary's 3 minute cameo in the NSW Cup GF that convinced you that he's ready for the NRL?
snake77
🛡️
Besides the Tigers in 2023 and the Storm last year we have had some pretty poor trials the last few years.
If I recall correctly 2023 we looked bad against the Storm in the second trial. Johnson looked like it would be a long year. Instead he had one of the best years of his career.
Lets see if they improve next week now they have something to work off.
At the moment the number of guys being nursed through injuries to make round 1. Or the number that look to be unavailable for round 1 is more of a concern.
If I recall correctly 2023 we looked bad against the Storm in the second trial. Johnson looked like it would be a long year. Instead he had one of the best years of his career.
Lets see if they improve next week now they have something to work off.
At the moment the number of guys being nursed through injuries to make round 1. Or the number that look to be unavailable for round 1 is more of a concern.
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