The Warriors admit they will walk a roster tight rope for the final two months of their historic NRL season after confirming four players are to return home.
Chief executive Cameron George said an exhausting season will go to another level when Ken Maumalo, David Fusitu’a, Agnatius Paasi and King Vuniyayawa depart their Terrigal base on July 27, two days after the round 11 match against Sydney Roosters.
George said there is virtually no chance the homesick foursome will be back as the growing restrictions around COVID-19 in Australia have left little hope of being granted trans-Tasman travel exemptions.
The departure last week of forward Leivaha Pulu will leave the Warriors five players down heading into the their last nine games. They are also nursing a number of injuries.
George said landing replacement loan players won’t be a straightforward process, piling more stress on interim coach Todd Payten.
“The reality of the five players is that three of them are in the 17 this week and they’re big contributors to our performance,” George said.
“It’s getting tougher and tougher as the year goes on, as other clubs get injuries, to try to find those loan players.
“We’re certainly very skinny in a lot of areas in our roster. I just hope and pray that we don’t get any more injuries, can bounce through a few games and get a bit of luck for once.”
Penrith forward Jack Hetherington is already in the squad and the Warriors hope to convince other clubs to loan them specialist wingers and middle forwards.
“We’ve just got to continue to work with the active lists that are out there and see whether we can get the right person to come and help,” George said.
“We’ve got some good young kids (development players) there but we’ve got to be careful we don’t push them into a situation too early in their career.”
George won’t rule out other homesick Warriors players pulling the pin but said the club would abide by its commitment to see out the season.
He didn’t blame NRL bosses, who had been positive about their chances of families getting travel exemptions during negotiations with the Warriors in April.
That was a stipulation before the players agreed to relocate to Australia.
Three months on, George said it was now apparent government agencies won’t budge on the issue and he completely supported the players’ decision.
George wouldn’t comment on the issue of payments for the players who return home early, saying only that confidential discussions had been held.
Players’ Association boss Clint Newton, who was involved in those talks, commended the returning players and thanked Warriors management for their compassion.
“These players and their families have made tremendous sacrifices since March when the challenges first began, which should be recognised,” Newton said.
