NRL: New coach Andrew Webster promises to restore pride in NZ Warriors jersey

New NZ Warriors coach Andrew Webster is vowing to address the issues of the past, before quickly looking to the future as the side prepares to start NRL pre-season next week. 

The squad's attitude and resilience were questioned at times last season, but Webster is promising fans his players will know exactly what it means to play for the club as he looks forward to a fresh start.

He's no stranger to the corridors of Mt Smart either. 

The Australian was an assistant coach at the club from 2015 to 2017, but he isn't seeking to make massive changes now he's got the top job. 

Andrew Webster as NZ Warriors' assistant coach (2015).
Andrew Webster as NZ Warriors' assistant coach (2015). Photo credit: Image - Photosport

"Any new coach that comes in, everyone thinks they're going to rip everything apart," Webster told Newshub. "But often in a place that's probably not succeeding as much as they want to, there's probably a lot of things that are really good."

Ready to embrace a "fresh start" as the Warriors' COVID home-hiatus comes to an end, Webster doesn't think the club are too far away from starting to realise some of the success long-suffering fans have been dreaming of. 

But he won't be brushing over their issues either, as the team finished 15th last season - with their attitude coming in for plenty of criticism.

As someone who's been at the club before, he knows all too well how loyal the Warriors faithful are, and what they want in return. 

"I can promise you right now, they're going to know exactly how important it is and what an honour it is to play for the Warriors," Webster insists. 

"So they're going to know that from the word go and they'll know exactly what the jersey means. 

 "To a certain point we need to quickly review the past. We need to look at what we didn't do well and what we did do well.  But we've also got to say 'boys, this is a new challenge and a new squad.'

"We have to identify a few things, fix them, and then we just gotta say 'commit and move forward to a fresh start.'"

Webster celebrates with Brian To'o after winning the minor premiership.
Webster celebrates with Brian To'o after winning the minor premiership. Photo credit: Photosport

Good work one week was quickly undone the next as blowout defeats and inconsistency marred their 2022 campaign. 

Coming from back-to-back premiers Penrith and working under former Warriors coach Ivan Cleary,  Webster knows the fundamentals needed to succeed and he's demanding the side be more resilient, particularly on defence.

The Warriors conceded the most points in the competition last season with 700. A stark contrast to the Panthers' 330. 

"What we want to be is a team that can stand up to that pressure no matter what," Webster said. "So you've got to look at it, you've got to address it. 

"If you just pretend it didn't happen, they're going to go 'sweet, just move on' - we can't.

"Everyone talks about attitude, you've actually got to be excited about defending. It's got to be something you pride yourself on. We're going to have to work on that.

"Like I said before, you're not as far away as you think. Everyone blames defence on this and that but there's a huge amount of factors that go into it. 

"If you can get the attitude right and want to do it and connect with your team mate, you're going to go way better on defence."

With a core group remaining and a crop of experienced players arriving, the belief is there that the club's fortunes can be turned around, as Webster aims to build an environment where they can succeed. 

Some may bristle at talks of "culture", but the incoming boss insists there are fundamentals a tema needs to get right before a new season. 

"You've got to set the scene early - culture drives success," Webster said.

"It's a word people hate and love. People hate it because it's just a word but you have to create a good one.  That's going to be the challenge straight away to do it as quickly as possible. 

"There's going to be parts of the culture that we're going to grow with because it's a fresh start and we're new, and we'll create our own authentic culture, but it's going to be a good culture.

"The important thing around that is, we're really inclusive and like I said. we're going in the same direction. It's clear, there's no doubt about what we're doing."