NRL: Five nailbiters that saved NZ Warriors' bacon in run to playoffs

This time last year - and for 21 of the last 30 NRL seasons - NZ Warriors fans have been left licking their wounds, wondering why that hadn't been 'their' year.

Players would be dragging themselves home from 'Mad Monday', that saddest of all celebrations, signifying their season was over without reaching the competition climax.

The past couple of months haven't exactly gone smoothly for the Warriors, as they've tumbled from second on the table in Round 11 to sixth at the end of the regular season - but at least they're still alive.

And they have a home playoff game against the four-time defending champion Penrith Panthers at Go Media Stadium on Friday.

This time last year, after the Warriors had finished 13th, we were all ruing the number of games they had let slip through their fingers by the smallest of margins - those results that cost them a spot in the top eight.

In fact, they lagged just five points outside the playoff picture in 2024, with a record of 3-1-7 in games decided by six points (a converted try) or less. They only needed to turn half those defeats into wins to progress.

This year, they've achieved that.

Including the weekend's 27-26 loss to Manly Sea Eagles, the Warriors had an 8-4 record in those squeakers - 5-0 in those first 11 rounds alone.

No other team won as many close games in 2025. Minor premiers Canberra Raiders went 7-2 and runners-up Melbourne Storm were 7-4, while third-placed Canterbury Bulldogs (4-3) were the only others with a winning record.

"Honestly, probably the missing thing from that formula is how tight the boys are," Warriors coach Andrew Webster explained, after his team's 'record' 6-2 start to the campaign.

"I'm not saying we weren't close last year, but there's definitely a different level of care for each other and wanting to have each other's backs.

"We're certainly not perfect at the moment. I actually think we're probably not playing as good as we were at times last year, when we were probably more clinical, but this year, we've got way more fight and way more togetherness."

That hot start fell away sharply towards the end, as key injuries took their toll and other teams found their momentum. In the last seven rounds, the Warriors went 2-5, including 1-3 in close games, and probably relied on the draw to get them through, as their closest rivals knocked each other off.

In the spirit of glass half full - and not in chronological order - here are five games that paved their way to the playoffs:

Round 20, 20 July - Warriors 20 Newcastle Knights 15

No-one will ever forget this finish, as the visitors trailed into the final minute, desperately seeking a field goal to force extra time. Halfback Tanah Boyd missed three attempts and a penalty that could have won it in the dying moments, but when his third pot was charged down, something amazing happened.

The bounce fell to teenage second-rower Leka Halasima about 40 metres out, and he simply charged that distance to the tryline to break the hearts of Newcastle fans and players.

"I'll take it," Webster said. "I've been on the end of a few of those - I think every team has at some stage.

"We just came up with a freakish play from a young guy that's got heaps of talent - that's what he's got in his toolkit."

In the 'what comes around goes around' department, two weeks later, Webster and his team were on the end of another one of those, when the Dolphins ran in a try at the death for a 20-18 win at Mt Smart.

Round 7, 19 April - Warriors 20 Brisbane Broncos 18

This one seemed in the bag with quarter of an hour remaining and the Warriors ahead 18-6.

Converted tries to former Warriors Jesse Arthar and Reece Walsh brought the visitors back on level terms with five minutes remaining, and neither team could break the deadlock in regulation time.

The Warriors outscored their rivals four tries to three, but halfback Luke Metcalf was having an off night with the boot. He would soon have a chance to redeem himself.

Living up to his rocks-and-diamonds reputation, Walsh made a massive mistake at the start of Golden Point, putting his kickoff dead on the full, and Metcalf slotted the winning penalty from halfway.

"He wanted the kick, he wanted it bad," Webster confirmed. "It was a strong wind that died down as he was about to kick it, but he had complete confidence in himself.

"There were a couple of moments there, with missed goalkicking and stuff, that he probably would have been worried about, but he backed his work, he works hard at it and he got the rewards."

Round 4, 30 March - Warriors 26 Wests Tigers 24

Under the coaching of Kiwis legend Benji Marshall, the Tigers were one of the big improvers of the competition this season and they seemed to have the Warriors on the ropes at 24-18 with little more than 10 minutes left.

A try to Halasima, converted by Metcalf, drew the visitors level and, from the restart, fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad was hit high by Wests forward Alex Seyfarth and Metcalf - who had been flawless from the tee all night - slotted a 40-metre penalty that proved the gamewinner.

"I was, like, if he wants it, let's take it," Webster said. "Straight away, he wanted it, which was awesome.

"I was nervous of the distance, but he smashed it. I loved how he stood up - everyone talks about how goalkickers want that moment."

Round 10, 10 May - Warriors 15 St George Illawarra Dragons 14

Another statistic that fell the Warriors' way this season saw them win all nine games that they led at halftime.

This was the closest they came to losing one.

At Wollongong, where their historic record has not been flash, the visitors led 14-4 at the break, but back-to-back tries to forward Dylan Egan and winger Corey Allan, one converted by Valentine Holmes, brought the Dragons back to level pegging, with almost half an hour to play.

Metcalf again proved the difference with his boot, slotting a field goal with 10 minutes on the clock, leaving his team to hang on grimly for the two competition points.

Round 24, 15 August - Warriors 14 St George Illawarra Dragons 10

Both games against St George fell into the nailbiter category.

In the return encounter at Mt Smart, the Warriors trailled 10-0 after 20 minutes at Mt Smart, drew level with a converted try to centre Adam Pompey with 20 minutes remaining and finally edged ahead, as Pompey secured his double with eight minutes left.

Notably, Boyd missed the conversion, leaving the Dragons within striking distance, and they had a couple of long-range chances that fell just short of seizing the upset.

The key moment probably came when the visitors had all the momentum midway through the first half, but lost two players in a head clash and then a third to concussion moments later.

With 10 minutes to go, they finally activated 18th man Tyrell Sloan, whose speed had the Warriors in fits, but with the memory of their last-ditch demise against the Dolphins still fresh, they regrouped to keep their line intact.

"Two weeks ago, against the Dolphins, that moment went against us," Webster said. "Tonight, it didn't."

The other nailbiters followed quite a different pattern to these five.

In all three - 30-26 against North Queensland Cowboys, 16-12 against the Dolphins and 36-30 against South Sydney Rabbitohs - the Warriors led at halftime, but were outscored by a collective 30-12 over the last 20 minutes and relied on their steely defence to hold on.

Significantly, Penrith Panthers compiled a 4-1-5 record in close contests, so keeping it close on Saturday would be a good place to start, if the Warriors are to keep their championship hopes alive into the second week.