Warriors open NRLW season in style with belting of Bulldogs in Hamilton

Sunday, 5 July 2026

Gayle Broughton goes over for the Warriors’ first try of their NRLW season, in their win over the Bulldogs in Hamilton on Sunday.

At FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton: Warriors Women 32 (Gayle Broughton try 21min, Emmanita Paki tries 26min, 36min, Tysha Ikenasio try 39min, Lavinia Tauhalaiku tries 42min, 68min, Patricia Maliepo try 55min; Maliepo 2 con) Bulldogs Women 10 (Alexis Tauaneai try 61min, Monica Tagoai try 70min; Tayla Preston con). HT: 10-0.

Sin bin: Mya Hill-Moana (Warriors) 14min

The Warriors’ NRLW campaign is off to the perfect start, after a belting of the Bulldogs in their season-opener in Hamilton on Sunday.

Back in the competition last season after their four-year Covid-enforced hiatus, Ron Griffiths’ side have rolled into 2026 much better prepared (with even a trial game under their belts this time), and it certainly showed first-up, in a comprehensive 32-10 victory.

In front of a crowd of 4928, for what will be one of two games down State Highway 1 for the Auckland-based side this year, the Warriors women notched their first win at FMG Stadium Waikato, after going 0-3 at their home away from home last season, and they were duly able to have the club’s victory song belted out soon after the fulltime whistle.

It will be a result tempered by the fact the Dogs, in their second year in the competition, finished a place below the Kiwi club in ninth on the ladder last year, and the Warriors had crushed them 34-6 in Sydney in that season.

But nonetheless, this will be an immediate confidence-booster for a team that is still without a couple of their big-name signings in Mele Hufanga, who is nursing a hamstring strain, and Stacey Waaka, who is still getting her bearings after linking up a fortnight ago after a concussion with the Black Ferns Sevens.

Their other recruits proved more than handy, though, with five-eighth Gayle Broughton playing a starring role, the former New Zealand sevens rep and 2025 Broncos premiership winner opening the scoring with a nice dummy and powerful burst, then going on to lay on a couple of others, in a dangerous combination with strong-running halfback Patricia Maliepo.

Broughton’s class helped light up the left side, as centre Emmanita Paki and winger Lavinia Tauhalaiku both bagged two tries apiece, the latter racking up a team-high 144 metres, bettered for the game only by Dogs prop Alexis Tauaneai (156 on 18 carries), who eventually opened the visitors’ scoring when too little too late in the 61st minute.

From the very first whistle it looked destined to be the Warriors’ day, when Shakira Baker’s hit on Angelina Teakaraanga-Katoa forced an error from the Bulldogs co-captain on the very first hit-up of the game.

But the home side then had to withstand a bad patch of ill-discipline which saw them concede five penalties inside the first nine minutes and forced referee Ziggy Przeklasa-Adamski to have a stern word with captain Apii Nicholls.

It got even worse when Bulldogs co-captain Tayla Preston dummied and was held up over the line by Nicholls and Mya Hill-Moana, because the latter, the former Roosters prop in her first game for the club following pregnancy last year, was sin-binned for it being a hip-drop tackle.

But after riding out the wave of attacks down their own end, it was a thumping hit from another Broncos recruit who finds herself back at the Warriors, Annetta Nuuausala, which turned the tide.

The spilled ball forced on Kalosipani Hopoate then saw Broughton do her thing to open the scoring, before she was quickly at it again to put Paki away and give the hosts a 10-0 halftime advantage.

It was then a scintillating start to the second stanza which put the game to bed, as powerful prop Laishon Albert-Jones proved an absolute wrecking ball, and newly-recruited former Wallaroos halfback Jasmin Huriwai showed all sorts of speed and creativity out of dummy half.

The result was a remarkable three tries before the Dogs could even touch the ball, 10 minutes into the half.

The Warriors now prepare for a trip to Canberra for a second-round clash next Sunday against the Raiders, who finished second-to-bottom last year, and who opened their season with a 20-4 win over the Dragons in Kogarah.