They proved to be two of the more disappointing sides of the 2012 season but that didn’t stop them from turning on a Round 10 thriller as the lead changed five times before the Warriors held on for a nail-biting 30-26 win.
It was one that got away for the visitors, who jumped to an early 10-nil lead courtesy of tries to Joseph Leilua and Aiden Guerra but the paid the price for some wayward goal-kicking as the Warriors stormed back to lead 12-10 at the break. Star of the show was Konrad Hurrell who scored both of his side’s first-half tries including a brilliant 65-metre dash to open their account.
The second stanza saw the Warriors and Roosters go tit for tat with Brian Smith’s men taking less than two minutes to steal back the lead, but there was rarely time to catch a breath as defence took a back seat.
A fast-stepping Shaun Johnson sliced through to score between the posts in the 48th minute, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves barged across just moments later, then two consecutive Warriors tries from James Maloney cross-field kicks saw the Warriors finally take a match-winning 10-point lead.
Still, the Roosters ensured a tense finish when Anthony Minichiello crossed with four minutes remaining – the home side surviving the late push to eventually secure the two competition points.
Despite making 10 errors to the Roosters’ six, the Warriors enjoyed 53% possession and missed 16 less tackles than the visitors.
Hurrell was superb for the Warriors, making three line-breaks, nine tackle-breaks and 203 metres, while Jake Friend contributed a game-high 44 tackles for the Roosters.
