WARRIORS 14 - 30 DRAGONS
FULLTIME: That is the game in Hamilton. The Dragons muscle up midway through the first half and claim their 21st win over the Warriors in 26 games. The Warriors have now dropped three straight.
79mins: Dragons throw the pass forward. So the Warriors will get one final shot to put points on the board.
78mins: Warriors make a mistake off the play-the-ball and the Dragons will get one last chance tp score.
77mins: Johnson missed the conversion. Dragons lead 30-14.
76mins: TRY WARRIORS: The try is given. But the Warriors still trail big.
76mins: Possible try to the Warriors as the starts to fall in Hamilton. Shaun Johnson kicks on the last and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad grounds the ball. The Bunker will take a look.
75mins: Five minutes to go in Hamilton. Dead quiet in the stadium. You'd think you were watching golf it is that quiet. Warriors have the ball, 20 metres from the try-line.
73mins: Warriors kick on the last and Ken Maumalo catches the ball but is muscled into touch. Sums up the Warriors match right here.
71mins: Both teams confused for a moment as the referees stop play. It turns out it is a penalty to the Warriors. They start the set 30 metres from the line.
70mins: Went up as no try, comes back as no try due to a knock on. 10 minutes to go in Hamilton.
70mins: The Dragons are making massive metres. At this stage (according to NRL.com) The Dragons have made 1136 metres while the Warriors have 1170.
Johnson kicks on the last and Kieran Foran ends up with the ball and the Bunker will take a look at a possible try.
67mins: Another missed conversion by Lafai.
66mins: TRY DRAGONS: Taane Milne joins the scoring party. That is first of his career, and another poor second half by the Warriors means it is all over again.
64mins: No luck again for the Warriors. Kalifa Faifai Loa kicks in desperation, and the ball bounces off David David Fusitua's foot and the Dragons have a scrum 10 metres from the try line.
63mins: Another poor kick on the last and now the Dragons have a seven tackle set.
62mins: Josh McCrone kicks the ball into his own player, and the Warriors have a seven tackle set.
61mins: Tim Lafai missess the conversion again.
60mins: TRY DRAGONS: Kalifa Faifai Loa has his second of the game. Easy stuff by the away side. The former Kiwis international gets the ball on the blindside and powers over Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to score.
58mins: Dragons pressure the Warriors again, and the home side are forced to tap the ball dead.
57mins: The Dragons put the Warriors goal, but Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad just escapes. However, they make no ground on their set and Issac Luke kicks early.
55mins: Inside the 20, the Warriors kick on the last, but the kick goes too deep and the Dragons have a seven-tackle set.
54mins: The Dragons make another break through the middle, but a desperate tackle forces a mistake.
Two players later, they win a penalty.
53mins: Johnson kicks on the last, straight to Jason Nighingale. Now the away side is back on the attack.
52mins: Great set by the Dragons following the try.
51mins: The conversion is missed by Lafai.
50mins: TRY DRAGONS: Nene McDonald scores his first try of the match in the corner. Dragons lead by 12 with a kick to come.
49mins: Hame Sele makes a massive bust through the middle, but Kieran Foran makes a try-saving tackle.
48mins: Dragons on the ball and Ryan Hoffman intercepts the ball. They now have the ball inside the Dragons half. On the last tackle, another poor fifth tackle option and the Dragons have possession.
47mins: The ball goes into touch off a Warriors kick. Dragons scrum.
46mins: Possible try to the Dragons here. Jason Nightingale offloads to Taane Milne, but he is smashed by James Gavet and the ball goes forward and they Dragons pounce on the loose ball. The play is checked by the Bunker, and it is given no try.
44mins: Bodene Thompson makes a perfect run on the fourth tackle, He gets the quick play, but RTS is in at hooker and throws an awful pass which goes forward. Looked like an NFL Quarterback doing a flick forward to the running back.
43mins: The Dragons make a great bust through the middle of the field, and they run straight through a number of Warriors. But Josh McCrone is caught on the last and they Warriors get the ball back.
42mins: Dragons kick on the last and RTS soars high into the sky like an AFL player to take the catch. Once again, good metres made by the Warriors. GThe kick on the last, 10 metres from the line, but the kick is easily collected by Tim Lafai.
41mins: James Gavet, aggressive as always with the first hit-up. Issac Luke then makes a great run from dummy-half. Johnson kicks on the last and it goes straight to Kalifa Faifai Loa
40mins: We are back underway in Hamilton. The Warriors will have first use of the ball to start the second.
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HALFTIME: 40 minutes down, 40 minutes to go in Hamilton. The Dragons lead 18-10. Can they hold on? or will the Warriors bounce back?
38mins: Johnson pushes the conversion across the face of the posts and it remains Dragons 18, Warriors 10.
38mins: TRY WARRIORS: The try is given and Nicoll-Klokstad has three in three games. He really needs that after struggling defensively this match.
37mins: Possible try to the Warriors. Shaun Johnson kicks on the last and Joel Thompson spills the ball. It is picked up by Bodene Thompson who throws the ball to Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad who needs a try to hopefully gain some confidence.
36mins: Another penalty for the Warriors and they take it quickly. Must score here.
35mins: Roger Tuivasa-Sheck gets the ball and runs it towards the Dragons line. He is leading the Warriors in metres again.
Two plays later they win their first penalty of the match.
33mins: The try-scorer lands the conversion. Dragons have scored 18 unanswered points.
32mins: TRY DRAGONS: Tim Lafai scores the third of the night for the Dragons. Another big hole on the right wing, Josh McCrone puts Lafai into space, and he steps past Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (who is struggling tonight) and he goes over.
31mins: The Warriors make ground through the middle of the field, but Sam Lisone makes another mistake. Things are not looking great right now for the home-side in Hamilton.
29mins: PENALTY GOAL DRAGONS: The Dragons take a six point lead as Tim Lafai lands the penalty goal.
28mins: Another penalty for being inside the 10. They will take a shot at goal, which as a Warriors fan I am happy with as the Dragons have all the momentum right now.
27mins: Another penalty for the Dragons for having a hand on the ball when the Dragons attempted to play it. They start the set inside the Warriors half.
26mins: The offloads are climbing for the Dragons, but a poor kick on the last means a poor end to the set by the away side.
26mins: The Dragons are starting to find gaps in the Warriors defence as they make another break down the right wing. 19 missed tackles now by the Warriors.
24mins: TRY DRAGONS: The try is given and the away side takes the lead in Hamilton.
24mins: Joel Thompson goes over the line, and the Bunker will take a look.
23mins: The Dragons go close to scoring, but the Warriors hold them up and it is a penalty.
22mins: The Dragons make a break down the right wing and it is three on one, but Tim Lafai throws the ball infield to Kurt Mann and Shaun Johnson saves a try.
21mins: Tim Lafai lands the conversion. All tied here in Hamilton.
20mins: TRY DRAGONS: Kalifa Faifai Loa finishes off the play he started and what a beauty it was. Lafai put Faifai Loa into a hole after getting the pass and the former Kiwis international scores his first of the season.
19mins: Foran again kicks on the last, but it falls into the safe bread-basket of Jason Nightingale. The Dragons offload the ball Kalifa Faifai Loa who puts Tim Lafai into space.
18mins: Tyson Frizell nearly breaks the line on the fourth tackle and they kick on the last and nearly create something, but RTS is there to clean up the scraps.
16mins: Both sides with similar sets. They kick just outside the 40, and it goes into touch metres from the goal line. Very close to a 40/20.
15mins: Good set following the try by the Warriors. They pin the Dragons inside their 20.
14mins: The conversion is over. Warriors lead 6-0.
12mins: TRY WARRIORS: Ben Matulino scores the first try of the match, in his 200th NRL game. A pin-point pass from Kieran Foran puts the veteran prop into a massive hole and he strolls towards the line, and then falls over the line.
11mins: First error of the game as the Dragons spill the ball trying to offload. Warriors scrum 40 metres from the line.
10mins: The Warriors make metres down the right wing. Johson tries to chip the ball over the Dragons line, but it goes straight into the breadbasket of Kalifa Faifai Loa.
9mins: Both sides yet to crack in the match. Fairly even contest to start, but the Dragons massive forwards are making great ground and look dangerous. They are also getting heaps of quick-play-the-balls.
Josh McCrone kicks the ball into touch and both teams will take a quick breather.
7mins: The Warriors kick into space again and they try to push Nightingale back in goal but it doesn't work. Kurt Mann makes a break from dummy-half in the fourth, and they Dragons make superb metres.
6mins: Johnson kicks early in the set and Jason Nightingale is tackled close to his try-line. The Dragons' forwards make some good runs and they kick on the last into space.
4mins: The Dragons with the first real attacking kick of the game, but it is a poor kick and a poor end to the set.
3mins: Warriors limit the Dragons to little ground and they start their second set close to the halfway line. Once again the kick on the last, 30 metres out. Ken Maumalo taps it back and it is a messy end to the set.
2mins: The Warriors attack down the left wing and make solid ground. The kick on the last, 30 metres out from the line and Johnson kicks it over the top towards Jason Nightingale. Great end to the set.
1mins: Both the Dragons props with strong runs to start the match. They quickly get up over halfway and kick towards Roger Tuivasa-Sheck on the last who makes a nice return.
KICKOFF: We are underway in Hamilton. The Dragons have first use of the ball in a perfect night for footy.
8:01pm: Ben Matulino leads the Warriors out in his 200th match. He is the fourth Warriors to play 200 games for the club in his last season before moving to the Tigers.
7:58pm: The Dragons are missing both Josh Dugan and Gareth Widdop, however, they have a full strength forward pack which toyed with the Warriors earlier in the season. Paul Vaughn is also playing for the Dragons, who has arguably been the best forward so far in 2017.
7:56pm: Big match for the Warriors tonight. The Warriors will have to win by 23 points if they want to move into the NRL top eight (for now). Who do you think will win? Tweet us @Newshubsport
Hello and welcome to live updates of the New Zealand Warriors hosting the St George Illawarra Dragons at FMG Stadium in Hamilton, New Zealand
We bring you live streaming written commentary, video highlights (be sure to refresh your browser) and all the action. VIDEO will be available as soon as the final whistle goes.
Commentary will start from around 7:55pm (NZT). In the meantime check out the video above as Ryan Hoffman talks about playing in Hamilton.
Ben Matulino will play his 200th match for the Warriors tonight. A number of current and former players have paid their respects to the prop on social media.
Full match preview of tonight's match is posted below.
Lineups
Warriors
1. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, 2. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 3. Blake Ayshford, 4. David Fusitu'a, 5. Ken Maumalo, 6.Kieran Foran, 7. Shaun Johnson, 17. Ben Matulino, 9. Issac Luke, 10.Jacob Lillyman, 11. Bodene Thompson, 12. Ryan Hoffman, 13. Bunty Afoa
Interchange - 8. James Gavet, 14.Nathaniel Roache, 15. Sam Lisone, 18. Charlie Gubb
Dragons
1. Jason Nightingale, 2. Nene McDonald, 3. Taane Milne, 4. Tim Lafai, 5. Kalifa Faifai Loa, 6. Kurt Mann, 7. Josh McCrone, 8. Russell Packer, 9. Cameron McInnes, 10. Paul Vaughn, 11. Tyson Frizell, 12. Joel Thompson, 13. Jack de Belin
Interchange - 14. Tariq Sims, 15. Leeson Ah Mau, 16. Hame Sele, 17. Jai Field
Match facts and stats
Referees: Henry Perenara and Peter Gough
Sideline officials: Russell Turner and Chris McMillan
Review officials: Luke Patten and Jared Maxwell
Warriors prop Ben Matulino will play his 200th NRL Telstra Premiership match while second-rower Bodene Thompson will celebrate his 50th for the club.
The Red V have won 80 per cent of their matches against the Warriors
The Dragoons have lost to the Warriors just once in their last 13 meetings.
The Warriors and Dragons have met at FMG Stadium Waikato once before in a 2004 pre-season match, which the Dragons won 36-30.
In 10 matches this season, the Warriors have scored 174 points, however they have only scored 46 of those points in the second half.
Past meetings
*Head to head: Played 25, Warriors 5, Dragons 20, drawn 0
Last time played: Dragons 26 def Warriors 12, March 26, 2017
Last time in New Zealand: Warriors 30 def Dragons 12, May 1, 2016
*Stats from NRL.com
Head-to-head: Warriors - $1.57 Dragons - $2.30
Pre-match banter - Ryan Hoffman dismisses Warriors poor record against Dragons ahead of Round 11 clash
"No point dwelling on the past" is the clear message that the Warriors are taking into their crucial encounter with the St George Dragons in Hamilton on Friday night.
The New Zealand side hold a terrible record against the Dragons, having lost 20 of the last 25 matches , and coming off an embarrassing 36-28 loss to the Panthers last week, playing the club's bogie team couldn't come at a worse time.
The Warriors conceded 30 second half points in the defeat in Penrith, but veteran backrower Ryan Hoffman said the team has to move forward.
"We have certainly learned from it but we have put that performance to bed because we had too," said Hoffman.
"I don't think any one of the 17 players were happy with their performance, but Rugby league is on again the next week and you get a chance to rectify it. It really hurt our pride, that's what hit the hardest so we have a chance this week to restore some pride."
The 33-year-old also dismissed the club's record against their round 11 opponents, noting that history bears no meaning over the here and now.
"To be quite honest t doesn't really matter, we aren't playing the teams of the past, we are playing the 2017 Dragons and we are the 2017 Warriors.
"We went down to them at the start of the year in a performance we weren't happy about so we are looking to back that up with a much better performance this week."
The Dragons have shown strong form in 2017, winning six of their 10 games to sit fifth on the NRL ladder, with Hoffman admitting the quality that the Sydney club has shown begins with their ferocious forward pack.
"They have one of the form forward packs, up front Paul Vaughan and Russell Packer are fantastic players, it's a great challenge for us and it is an area we need to shore up a bit more."
Hoffman added, "Obviously the people here in Waikato really enjoy having us down here, it's shaping up to be a pretty big game for us.
"The Dragons are a team in form and there is a reason they have been in the top four all season. They will be a really big challenge for us."
Despite only winning four from 10 games in 2017, the Warriors sit two points outside a playoff spot and could temporarily jump inside the top eight with a win over the Dragons.
