{"id":782984,"date":"2026-07-06T16:36:45","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782984\/"},"modified":"2026-07-06T16:36:45","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:36:45","slug":"warriors-re-sign-prolific-try-scoring-winger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/782984\/","title":{"rendered":"Warriors re-sign prolific try-scoring winger"},"content":{"rendered":"

The New Zealand Warriors<\/a> have confirmed Dallin Watene-Zelezniak<\/a> will remain in Auckland until at least the end of the 2028 NRL<\/a> season.<\/p>\n

The Kiwi international’s new extension will mark an eight-year tenure at the Warriors and recently etched his name in the club’s history by becoming the 33rd player to appear in 100 NRL<\/a> games in Warriors colours.<\/p>\n

Watene-Zelezniak is marked third in the top try-scorers in the NRL<\/a> so far with an incredible strike rate of 16 tries in 15 outings this year.<\/p>\n

The prolific finisher has played 243 NRL<\/a> games, with stints at the Warriors, Bulldogs and the Panthers, where he made his debut in 2014.<\/p>\n

Th 30-year-old Hamilton-born star had a career-best season in 2023, where he was crowned Dally M Winger of the Year and scored an astounding 24 tries in 20 games for the Warriors in their successful 2023 campaign.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Warriors coach Andrew Webster<\/a> was pleased Watene-Zelezniak has agreed to terms and appreciates what he brings to his side.<\/p>\n

\u201cDallin is a rugby league identity and a Warriors identity,\u201d Webster said in a Warriors statement.<\/p>\n

\"NRLAUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – APRIL 13: Dallin Watene-Zelezniak of the Warriors reacts after drawing the round six NRL match between New Zealand Warriors and Manly Sea Eagles at Go Media Stadium Mt Smart, on April 13, 2024, in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Hannah Peters\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’re so grateful to have him here \u2026 the person he is, most importantly a family man, but also what he brings on the weekends to the team with his energy and his fearlessness.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watene-Zelezniak sits among some of the greatest Warriors try scorers, and his try against the Dolphins<\/a> on Sunday brought his total try tally in his club colours to 75, marking him with one of the best strike rates (0.75 tries per game) among the Warriors greats.<\/p>\n

Still at the top of his game in his 13th season of NRL<\/a>, he is averaging 139 metres a game in 2026, recording 12 line breaks and 33 tackle breaks to help the Warriors maintain their position in second place on the ladder.<\/p>\n

\u201cDallin is a terrific example of a true professional in all he does, a huge asset to the club,\u201d said Warriors general manager recruitment, pathways and development, Andrew McFadden<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe shows so much passion in every area, providing a wonderful role model for all young players coming through our pathways. We’re thrilled to have him with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watene-Zelezniak is expected to be named on the wing for the Warriors in their clash against the Wests Tigers<\/a> at Campbelltown Sports Stadium on Friday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The New Zealand Warriors have confirmed Dallin Watene-Zelezniak will remain in Auckland until at least the end of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":782985,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-782984","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782984","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=782984"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/782984\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/782985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=782984"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=782984"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=782984"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}