Keighran earns praise from Kearney

Life after Shaun Johnson began in style for the Warriors on Saturday, and for coach Stephen Kearney the debut of rookie playmaker Adam Keighran played out to near-perfection.

In his Telstra Premiership debut, the 21-year-old was one of the standout players, scoring a first-half try, setting one up in the late in the match and kicking six goals.

A guarded Kearney gave Keighran a pass mark despite the Warriors running riot in attack despite missing hooker Issac Luke through injury. 

"He [Keighran] is pretty happy there – first NRL game and a win like that – I reminded him that I wish they were all like that. It was a positive start for him," Kearney said.

"I thought he did a pretty good job ... that's all I expect of him, for him to fulfill his role in the team.

"I think he's got some improvement in him ... I thought it was a good start for him."

After edging past fellow rookie Chanel Harris-Tavita in the battle to partner Green in the halves for round one, Keighran expressed his joy post-match. Several members of his family made the trip across the Tasman for the occasion.

"I'm seriously stoked, I still don't know what to say, I'm just so happy about the game," Keighran said.

"First game, got the nerves out, and now I can work on it for next week.

"I was just happy to get out there and play, but to score and kick a few goals there just made it so much better."

Meanwhile, Kearney also paid tribute to Green, who assumed the majority of the playmaking responsibilities in the victory, setting up three tries in the first half and handling almost all of the general play kicking.

"He's [the] chief organiser out there and I thought he managed parts of the game really well, and that's really important," Kearney said of Green.

"It's a great lesson for Adam to see how it's done in an NRL game, we've been doing it at training for 18 weeks [in the pre-season] and in trials, but to see it live in NRL pressure will be really beneficial for Adam."