Any and all doubts over NZ Warriors' character and resilience under coach Andrew Webster are fading by the day, with another impressive NRL victory.
After overcoming North Queensland Cowboys at Townsville, the Warriors have returned home to Mt Smart Stadium and came from behind to defeat Canterbury Bulldogs 16-14.
Combined with an opening win over Newcastle Knights, all three of the Warriors victories this season have been built on strong defence - a notion that would have seemed unthinkable in 2022, when the club suffered its worst-ever season.
Naturally, Webster's stock as a first-time coach is rising.
The 41-year-old was one of two stellar assistants to Ivan Cleary at Penrith Panthers during their run of back-to-back premierships in 2021 and 2022. The other was Cameron Ciraldo, now at the helm of the same Bulldogs side vanquished at Mt Smart.
While Ciraldo has an equally difficult task rebuilding his team, Webster's way has come up trumps early.
While he's delighted with the result, he insists the effort and toughness shown by his team to come from behind - as they've done in all three wins so far this year - is a credit to the 17 players on the field each week.
Make no mistake, resilience is the defining characteristic of Webster's Warriors.
"I don't know if it's a change in attitude, because we're a new club, a new team," he said. "This is our identity now.
"We built it throughout the pre-season, we wanted to get as confident as we could in the way we wanted to play.
"We knew it would stand up under pressure, if we got that confidence. We've spent a little bit of time on how we respond to adversity.
"The boys out there are the ones doing it. It's easy for me to say, but they're the ones doing it under pressure."
Sunday's win came against the backdrop of the Warriors' first real home match of the NRL in 2023, after they took their season-opener against the Knights to Wellington.
After three years impacted by COVID-19, they have been missed by their faithful supporters, who had to make do with the odd token appearance at home last year.
Despite waiting until round four to see their team run out on their spiritual home, Auckland has its team back for good.
That love goes both ways, Webster says.
"I'm so happy for all the fans. The boys were buzzing all week to get to play here.
"We've got a lot of new players who haven't played here as their home. This is the first time the boys have slept in their beds - even last year, when they bought games home, they were staying in hotels.
"This is the first time it's felt like a proper home game for them. We've got a lot of new players who got to experience for the first time as the home team.
"I'm just happy for the fans that rugby league is back in Auckland."
Webster's biggest task now will be to keep his players' feet on the ground - Warriors sides of the past have been cruelly caught out by expectation.
Amid a wave of renewed belief among the club and its fans, Webster wants Sunday's efforts to be repeated, week after week.
"The biggest thing is that it's a marathon - this season goes forever," he said. "We can't hang our hats on the first four rounds, we've got to keep doing it.
"I'm super proud of it, but we've got to get better. Everyone's going to improve fast.
"This is the period, after four games, [when] everyone works out their style of play, work out what they're doing right and wrong. They start building confidence, they start working things out.
"You've got to be ready now. You've got to have your gloves up.
"We want to go and win again."
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