Warriors Notch Up Fourth Straight Win

Warriors

The Warriors firmed up their playoff ambitions as they overran Canberra in the second half to score a 29-10 NRL win in Auckland on Sunday.

The home side trailed 10-8 at halftime but notched 21 unanswered points in the second stanza of what finished as a six-tries-to-two romp against the lowly-ranked Raiders.

It was the Warriors' fourth consecutive win and meant they consolidated sixth spot on the table, but there was concern over skipper Simon Mannering, who failed to finish the match after going off with a knee injury.

With their playoff hopes already gone, 14th-placed Canberra were looking to continue the momentum gained from their big-night upset win over premiers St George Illawarra and flew to Auckland earlier than usual to prepare.

But star fullback Josh Dugan said the onslaught from the Warriors down the middle of the field proved too tough.

"They punched a hole in our middle and we paid the price for that," said Dugan.

Giant winger Manu Vatuvei, who had a strong first half, was instrumental as the Warriors made a fast start with two tries in the first quarter hour.

Vatuvei got the first, forcing his way through two tacklers for his fourth touchdown in two matches.

He then made a big break that led to his side's second score.

When the ball got to James Maloney, the five-eighth decided to kick early and centre Shaun Berrigan was on hand to dive on the loose ball.

Down 8-0 and having been parked for long periods in their own half, the Raiders hit back after Warrior winger Bill Tupou couldn't pull in a Josh McCrone bomb under pressure.

From the ensuing possession, the visitors worked the ball to winger Daniel Vidot, who stepped Tupou to touch down.

Another McCrone bomb paid further dividends for Canberra just out from halftime.

As the defence hesitated, Jarrod Croker took the ball almost unchallenged to score and then added the extras to put the Raiders ahead.

However, the Warriors struck back early in the second spell, after fullback Kevin Locke, who continued his sharp form of recent weeks, nabbed a one-on-one strip against opposition skipper Alan Tongue deep in Canberra territory.

When the defence couldn't clean up a Shaun Johnson grubber, prop Sam Rapira grabbed his first try of the season.

Minutes later, a short pass from Feleti Mateo put centre Joel Moon over, and the Warriors went further ahead when Maloney scored after a break by Locke.

Tupou added the icing on the cake minutes from the end when a Maloney cross kick created the opening for him to dot down.