Three rugby league players in black jerseys and a coach stand with a trophy. An illustrated crowd watches as a stylized mountain rises in the background, with green rays emanating behind the trophy.
(L-R) James Fisher-Harris, Andrew Webster, and Erin Clarke all won at this year’s Dally M Awards ceremony. (Photos: Warriors. Design: The Spinoff)

Sportsabout 12 hours ago

The Warriors just had their greatest Dally M night ever. So can they finally win the NRL?

Ātea editor
Three rugby league players in black jerseys and a coach stand with a trophy. An illustrated crowd watches as a stylized mountain rises in the background, with green rays emanating behind the trophy.
(L-R) James Fisher-Harris, Andrew Webster, and Erin Clarke all won at this year’s Dally M Awards ceremony. (Photos: Warriors. Design: The Spinoff)

Six Dally M awards, the coach of the year, a stacked squad and a production line of young talent. The Warriors have almost everything they need – except a premiership.

Last night, the Warriors collected the most Dally M Awards the club has ever won in a single season. Despite the club’s success at rugby league’s premiere awards event, a maiden premiership remains elusive for a club desperate to get their hands on the Provan-Summons Trophy. With the club seemingly holding most of the pieces to a premiership puzzle, hopes will be high for the 2027 season, but does the club have what it takes to win it all?

Hosted in Sydney, Australia, stars from across the National Rugby League (NRL) and NRL Women’s Premiership (NRLW) gathered together for rugby league’s premier awards evening. Unsurprisingly, Penrith Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary claimed the top prize, the Dally M Medal, for the first time. However, it was the success of the Warriors that had many talking, particularly about head coach Andrew Webster winning 2026 NRL coach of the year for a second time. Webster first won the award in 2023 after his inaugural season with the Warriors.


“I want to congratulate particularly Justin [Holbrook] for the year he’s had,” Webster said as he accepted the award.

Holbrook, who is head coach of grand finalists Newcastle Knights, was widely favoured to win the top gong. Newcastle claimed the wooden spoon last year, finishing last in the competition. However, they became only the second team in the modern NRL era to go from wooden spooners to grand finalists this year, earning a place in the big dance against the Sydney Roosters this Sunday. Despite this, Holbrook missed out on the coach of the year award as finals results do not count towards judging.

Other award winners from the Warriors included co-captain James Fisher-Harris, who was named captain of the year and one of the props of the year, alongside fellow New Zealand international Naufahu Whyte. Warriors hooker Wayde Egan won hooker of the year, Erin Clark was lock of the year and fullback Taine Tuaupiki won the award for the tackle of the year. The club took home six Dally M Awards all up, going one better than its 2023 haul.

A man in a black tuxedo smiles while holding a small statue award in front of a large gold medal backdrop.
The 2026 NRL Dally M Coach of the Year Andrew Webster. (Photo: Warriors)

While Dally M Awards are a nice recognition of the club’s success and skill, they are bittersweet following the Warriors’ straight-set exit from the finals. Hopes were high for the club after finishing the regular season in second place and guaranteeing at least two home finals games. Despite this, the team failed to make it beyond the elimination finals, going down to the Dolphins at Go Media Stadium and then the Newcastle Knights at Eden Park in front of the largest rugby league crowd ever in New Zealand.

During his acceptance speech, Webster was asked by awards presenter Yvonne Sampson how he planned to heal the scars of this year’s failure. “We’ve had a good review. We’re tight as a team and as a community. We’ll get back, we’ll work hard,” Webster said.

Webster – who recently extended his contract with the Warriors until 2032 – spoke about the club failing to play its best football when it mattered most. “We’ll work on it and see where we go next year,” he told the audience.


In all fairness to Webster and the Warriors, the team suffered some major setbacks this year. Halfback Te Maire Martin broke his leg before the season even began, with fellow halfbacks Luke Metcalf and Tanah Boyd suffering serious injuries during the year. Star player Roger Tuivasa-Sheck had a season-ending ACL injury in round 12 and prop Jackson Ford – who was leading the Dally M medal race at the time – tore his pectoral muscle in round 16. Despite the long list of injuries, the club prided itself on its “next man up mentality”, with its player depth on full show in the back half of the year.

Looking to next year, the club will like its chances of making a deeper run into the finals, if the players can stay healthy. Centre Grant Anderson joins the Warriors after a year at the Brisbane Broncos alongside prop Sam McIntyre from the North Queensland Cowboys and winger Will Warbrick from the Melbourne Storm. Despite the departure of co-captain Mitch Barnett, Luke Hanson,  Marata Niukore, Metcalf and Tuivasa-Sheck, among others, the club will be looking to promote talented youngsters from its development sides. Hooker Makaia Tafua and centre Jye Linnane were both named in the New South Wales Cup team of the year and are likely to make their first-grade debuts next season.

With a talented group of young players steadily rising through the ranks, several Dally M team of the year inclusions, the reigning coach of the year and a record-level of support, expectations will once again be high for the Warriors in 2027. If the side can stay healthy, then there will be few excuses for failing to make at least a preliminary final, though many punters will likely be backing the side to go all the way.

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