Back rower Eddie Ieremia-Toeava has been brought onto the six-man bench for the One New Zealand Warriors’ second-round NRL clash against Canberra at Go Media Stadium tonight (8.00pm kick-off).
He comes into the squad for new signing Morgan Gannon, who had his first competition outing for the club in the New South Wales Cup curtain raiser against the Raiders.
Second rower-prop Marata Niukore and winger Alofia’ana Khan-Pereira were the two players omitted from the extended squad 24 hours before kick-off, both of them joining Gannon in the reserve grade side.
The big focus tonight will be on Roger Tuivasa-Sheck as he becomes the 13th player to join the One New Zealand Warriors’ 150-game club.
He’s included in an unchanged starting lineup from the one used in the outstanding season-opening 42-18 win over the Sydney Roosters last Friday night.
Tuivasa-Sheck’s 150-game achievement comes two games into the 32-year-old Ōtāhuhu Leopards junior’s ninth campaign with the Warriors and his third since rejoining the club in 2024 after a two-year break to play rugby union.
Reverting to his original position on the wing last season, Tuivasa-Sheck finished with 12 tries – equalling his career-best haul achieved in 2015 – and averaging a team-high 216 metres a game.
Crowned the club’s 2025 player of the year and Simon Mannering Medal winner, he started the 2026 campaign impressively last Friday night making 167 metres from 16 runs with two line breaks, a line break assist and two try assists.
Tomorrow he adds to a list of 150-game plus Warriors headed by Simon Mannering (301) and including Stacey Jones (261), Manu Vatuvei (226), Shaun Johnson (224), Ben Matulino (212), Logan Swann (195), Jacob Lillyman (188), Lance Hohaia (185), Sam Rapira (173), Awen Guttenbeil (170), Wairangi Koopu (159) and Micheal Luck (150).
Also closing in on major milestones are prop Jackson Ford and standoff Chanel Harris-Tavita, Ford playing his 99th career match on Friday night – his 66th for the Warriors – and Harris-Tavita his 97th (all for the Warriors).
The One New Zealand Warriors come into their clash against the 2025 minor premiers on the back of one of the most impressive first-round performances in the club’s history. In scoring the most points in a round one game in their history, the Warriors made it three from three against the Roosters in the opening round of a season having registered previous victories in 2002 (21-14) and 1999 (26-16).
They also continued a strong run of results in their first match of the season on New Zealand soil. Setting aside the Covid years they beat Manly Warringah in their first match at home last year, Newcastle (in Wellington) in 2023, Canterbury Bankstown in 2019, Gold Coast in 2018, Newcastle in 2017 and Parramatta in 2015; seven wins from nine matches with just two losses in corresponding matches coming against Cronulla Sutherland in 2024 and Melbourne in 2016.
The Warriors and Canberra have split their last 10 encounters 5-5 with the Raiders taking out the last three including a 16-10 win in a red-blooded contest at Go Media Stadium in the most recent battle.This will be the 55th meeting between the clubs – the Warriors’ most frequent opponents – with the Raiders holding a 29-25 advantage.
This will be the 55th meeting between the clubs – the Warriors’ most frequent opponents – with the Raiders holding a 29-25 advantage.