Warriors edge Rabbitohs in NRL thriller after losing Mitchell Barnett to injury
Sunday, 1 June 2025
At Accor Stadium, Sydney: Warriors 36 (Dallin Watene-Zelezniak 3min, Rocco Berry 32min, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad 38min; Leka Halasima 47min, Luke Metcalf 50min, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck 54min, 72 min tries; Luke Metcalf 4 goals) South Sydney 30 (Keoan Kolomatangi 8min, Alex Johnston 27min, 58 min, 62min, Latrell Mitchell 75min tries; Latrell Mitchell 5 goals). HT: 14-12.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck’s last-gasp try clinched a nerve-stretching win over Wayne Bennett’s South Sydney after losing inspirational co-captain Mitchell Barnett.
Barnett limped off with a knee injury after 22 minutes of the heart-stopping 36-30 victory at Sydney’s Accor Stadium on Sunday - and the New South Wales front rower - fresh from last Wednesday’s State of Origin opener - never returned.
It was later confirmed he would need a scan after falling awkwardly in a tackle.
The Warriors - inspired by the brilliance on both sides of the ball of fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad - scored seven tries, but a hat-trick by veteran winger Alex Johnston to go to 200 career tries and a Latrell Mitchell score - kept the Rabbitohs in the hunt.
Mitchell’s magic eroded the Warriors’ comfortable 18-point lead and made for a nervous finish before the Kiwi club clinched a fourth consecutive win in New South Wales for the first time since their debut season in 1995.
Barnett would have applauded the efforts of Jackson Ford and Demitric Vaimauga off the bench who re-energised the Warriors’ pack while co-captain James Fisher-Harris (33 first half tackles) and Erin Clark (30) doubled down in defence.
Ford collected the first try-assist of his career when his deft grubber kick - not a staple part of a middle forward’s skill set - was touched down by returning centre Rocco Berry.
But they looked a little listless thereafter, conceding a disappointing try to Rabbitohs front rower Keaon Kolomatangi.
The Warriors seemed set to score after earning a repeat set, but Metcalf flung a high pass to Nicoll-Klokstad, which was intercepted by Alex Johnston. The veteran Souths winger spurted 90m to score the 198th try of his NRL career.
But Berry’s try from some Ford flourish brought the Warriors back into the hunt, and they made the most of the Rabbitohs losing captain Latrell Mitchell to a head injury assessment by scoring another right-edge try.
Nicoll-Klokstad, who had saved two tries with timely tackles, ran for an astonishing 342m over the 80 minutes, and was fittingly on hand to cross just before halftime for his first try of 2025.
Metcalf atoned for his earlier error by finding Nicoll-Klokstad who slipped two tackles and managed to get off the ground and plant the ball over the line. Metcalf’s first conversion gave the Warriors a 14-12 halftime lead.
After absorbing some early pressure after the restart, the Warriors went out to an eight-point lead after 47 minutes. Some smart build-up by hooker Wayde Egan, and a big run and an offload from Vaimauga saw Leka Halasima prove unstoppable in his lunge for the line.
Metcalf, the Dally M Player of the Year leader, capitalised on a Mitchell error. He darted out of dummy half, stepped a defender and raced 70m to score.
When Roger Tuivasa-Sheck scored the sixth try from a left-edge attack, it looked like game over.
But Mitchell - fresh from Origin duty alongside Barnett - gave Souths a glimmer with a brilliant pass for Johnston to get two more tries to reach the 200 milestone and close in on 1958-1973 Australian legend Ken Irvine’s record of 212.
Tuivasa-Sheck grabbed his second try to make the game seem safe, but Mitchell made it a nerve-jangling ending with his converted try to cut the final margin to six points.
The only downside for the Warriors were the injuries to Barnett and the luckless Berry, who hurt a hamstring in his first game back.