Las Vegas analysis: Warriors fall victim to Sin City temptations, NRL must reconsider four games
Teams can go looking for reasons why they lost a game, but the Warriors shouldn’t have to dig too deep. Plus, why the Sharks are the real deal and the NRL should consider fewer games for the next Las Vegas extravaganza.
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The NRL’s second venture to Las Vegas has finished in a flurry of points, big hits and not too many controversies.
The Panthers got their quest for a fifth straight premiership off to a flying start against Cronulla while Ricky Stuart’s Raiders stunned the Warriors.
Here is what we liked and disliked from Vegas 2.0.
LIKES
PANTHERS PURRING
There should be no doubt about Penrith’s desire to win a fifth-straight NRL premiership this year and the Panthers should be title favourites.
The 28-22 win against a hyped Cronulla team was an emphatic statement after the Panthers were supposed to regress following the loss of Jarome Luai, James Fisher-Harris and Sunia Turuva.
Nathan Cleary hadn’t played since last year’s grand final due to a shoulder injury and didn’t miss a beat.
Isaah Yeo scored Penrith’s first try with pure determination. Jack Cole didn’t look out of place in Luai’s No. 6 jersey.
Liam Martin was as damaging as ever and six Panthers swarmed the Sharks on their last attacking play of the game.
The Panthers came to Las Vegas with the sole focus of winning. They were less open with the media than the other three teams.
That just shows how determined this club is to win, yet for some reason they have doubters every year.
The Daily Telegraph’s tipping panel for Vegas was split 9-5 in favour of Cronulla.
Maybe it was wishful thinking because people are sick of seeing Penrith win every year, but that doesn’t mean the Panthers have any plans to slow down.
VEGAS A WINNER
Las Vegas should be on every NRL tragic’s bucket list.
The colour, atmosphere, energy, vibe and people-watching in Sin City is unrivalled. It’s Magic Round on steroids.
The Fremont Street fan fest was the best rugby league event The Tackle has ever attended.
The players bought into it and the crowd responded. You had to be there to understand it. Even the neutral fans were in heaven.
The NRL is facing an uphill battle to capture the attention of Americans but what Vegas has done is give the game an event for fans to be proud of.
The only problem is the exorbitant prices in Vegas these days. Start saving now.
The view from ground level at Allegiant Stadium can’t be beaten but you wouldn’t want to be too far up the bleachers.
The atmosphere within the $3 billion stadium is ripping but if you find yourself up high it is a long way from the action.
RICKY AMBUSHES RIVAL
Ricky Stuart produced a coaching clinic on Warriors rival Andrew Webster.
With his 20-plus years of NRL coaching experience, Stuart nailed Canberra’s preparation after deciding he “wanted to make a statement” in Las Vegas.
Canberra’s preparation got off to a shocker after Test forwards Hudson Young and Morgan Smithies came to blows in a hotel elevator on their first night in Sin City.
The scandal had the potential to derail the Raiders, but Stuart handled it superbly by making the players front up and by Tuesday it had blown over. They trained intensely and with purpose.
In contrast, third-season coach Webster will be dissecting where it went wrong for the Warriors in a 30-8 drubbing that left a huge New Zealand contingent in the crowd shattered.
SHARKS SHOW BITE
The Sharks could be the real deal this year.
They fell short of beating Penrith but showed some spirit to get back into the contest after falling behind 24-10.
The Panthers don’t usually surrender a lead like that but Cronulla got close.
Braydon Trindall needs to stay fit because he takes the heat off Nicho Hynes.
Addin Fonua-Blake is a huge signing and was solid with 134m and a try in his club debut, but needs more support upfront from Oregon Kaufusi, Braden Hamlin-Uele and Tom Hazleton.
The Sharks will be disappointed with the loss but they showed some promising signs and should build.
RAIDER AN ORIGIN BOLTER
Raiders flyer Xavier Savage had the week of his life and should be in the mix for a Queensland Origin jersey this year if he continues this kind of form.
Savage kicked off his Vegas preparation by proposing to partner Taliah Simbolon in front of the famous Bellagio fountains.
He finished it with a double and 210m at Allegiant Stadium in what was one of the best performances of his 48-game career.
Savage has speed to burn and a knack of finding the tryline. Billy Slater would have been licking his lips.
DISLIKES
WARRIORS FALL FOR SIN CITY
Teams can go looking for reasons why they lost a game, but the Warriors shouldn’t have to dig too deep.
The Tackle witnessed a couple of things during the week that had us concerned.
On Tuesday night (local time), a group of six Warriors players were gambling on the casino floor past 9pm.
We’re not suggesting they were breaking rules or doing anything illegal, but it was a strange look during a game prep.
On match eve, another group of players attended the Kevin Hart show at Resorts World, which didn’t finish until midnight.
The Warriors were the last team to arrive in the US, touching down last Saturday, and might not have got Vegas fever out of their system early enough.
Their performance was disappointing given the huge Wahs contingent in the crowd, which was probably the biggest supporter base.
FOUR GAMES TOO MANY
The NRL must think twice about having four games on one day in Las Vegas.
The 90-4 scoreline in the Australia-England women’s Test did more harm than good in trying to sell the game to Americans and entertaining the crowd.
If we want to showcase our sport the contests have to be competitive. Blowouts are a waste of time and four games on one day is already testing the patience of fans.
A Jillaroos-Kiwi Ferns Test would have been a better option or even an NRLW contest – perhaps a grand final rematch.
The Super League game brought in about 10,000 fans from England but was also a poor contest for the most part.
It’s a long slog for fans from 1.30pm to 10.30pm (local time), especially when a beer is AUD $26 and a hot dog AUD $16.
A large portion of the 45,209 crowd cleared out during the women’s Test and didn’t return for the Panthers-Sharks blockbuster.
The 65,000-seat stadium is too big to only have about 20,000 in it at the end of the night.
RAIDER’S MOMENT TO FORGET
Joe Tapine’s shoulder charge on Mitch Barnett was an unnecessary brain explosion.
Captaining the Raiders for the first time, Tapine left his team vulnerable when he was sin-binned with 15 minutes to go and Canberra leading 28-4.
The Warriors didn’t have enough time to win the game, but it was a silly play and Tapine could be facing time on the sidelines because of it.
WARRIORS MUST MOVE RTS
Warriors coach Andrew Webster has a big decision to make with Roger Tuivasa-Sheck.
In his prime, ‘RTS’ was arguably the NRL’s No. 1 fullback but since returning to the game he has been parked on the wing.
It’s such a waste of talent.
Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad is no slouch but the Warriors may be a better team with Tuivasa-Sheck at fullback.
SUPER LEAGUE SHOCKER
The English fans brought so much to Vegas 2.0 but the Super League game was a stinker and Sam Burgess may have been better off staying home.
Reigning champions Wigan led Warrington 42-0 before putting the cue in the rack, the match finishing 48-24.
The fans were visible and vocal during the week, with their singing a highlight of promotional events.
But if the Super League wants to be invited back they need to put on a more competitive contest than that.
The Wigan fans summed it up with their “you’re s***” chants directed at their rivals for most of the match.
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