The Warriors haven’t won a title since joining the NRL in 1995. So why do fans like me keep coming back every season convinced it might finally be our year?
One of my first heartbreaks happened when I was just seven years old. There I was, standing in front of the big screen at the Dairy Flat Country Club, holding back tears as Bryan Fletcher shrugged off Stacey Jones to cross the line for the Roosters’ fifth try of the 2002 grand final. With less than 10 minutes to go in the game, the Warriors had no chance of pulling off a miracle comeback. It just wasn’t our year.
Almost a decade later, the Warriors were back in the big dance. It was miraculous they even made it that far, coming from sixth place on the ladder and defeating minor premiers Melbourne along the way. With 10 minutes left in the game, they were down by only eight points and made a play on Manly’s right edge, but we fell short. It just wasn’t our year – again.
Since then, the Warriors have been back to the finals only four times in 14 seasons. A preliminary final loss to the Brisbane Broncos in 2023 was the best result in that stretch. Otherwise, it’s been a painful loop of heartbreaks and wondering what could’ve been. With a new season underway, us Warriors tragics return like moths to a flame – strapping in for another year of rollercoaster emotions, ready to shave time off of our lives due to the stress we will eventually be subjected to.
Before 2023 and the advent of “up the Wahs”, the mantra for the Warriors had long been “it’s just a matter of faith”. It’s a poor marketing sell for supporters – almost like the organisation was hoping fans would stick around despite the constant disappointment. Another longtime favourite has been “this is our year”. It’s an evolution of the keeping the faith motto, sucking fans into believing that maybe, just maybe, it truly could be our year. For the last three decades though, it hasn’t been.
Whenever a new season rolls around, Warriors fans tend to have a pessimistic view of what’s ahead. We know from experience not to work ourselves up before inevitable disappointment. I still say the only time I’ll ever truly believe it’s our year is when the Warriors are winning a grand final by more than six points with two seconds left on the clock. Until then, I just don’t know if my heart can take it.
Despite this, year after year, my dreams get the best of me. There’ll be a couple of early season wins and the thought starts creeping into my mind – could it be? A hard fought victory, a dramatic comeback, or big upset transforms that thought into belief – don’t say it. A couple more triumphs through the Origin period usually does it – it’s our year. Then comes the fall off and disappointment: some close losses that should’ve been wins or an injury to a key player. And we gear up for the next season.
A lot of National Rugby League (NRL) fans in New Zealand have a second team they support, usually for one of two reasons: it’s either who they supported before the Warriors joined the competition in 1995, or they’re hedging their bets against the team’s inconsistent performance to maintain interest in the finals. My dad’s other team was the Melbourne Storm, my ex-girlfriend’s dad supported the Bulldogs, you’ll often spot a Rabbitohs supporter in the wilderness. But it’s always been the Warriors for me.
Growing up, I didn’t want to be an All Black like most kids in our rugby-mad nation – I wanted to be a Warrior. I live in New Zealand. I grew up watching the Warriors with my dad, uncles, and cousins – all of us shouting simultaneously at the TV in the living room, riding every moment for years. Some of my favourite memories are going to games with my dad, who used to embarrassingly bang on the signs on the south stand and shout at opposition players whenever they were in earshot. Last year, I took my son to a game, continuing the tradition.
In 2025, Warriors fans rode the wave like never before. The fortress of Rarotonga-Mt. Smart Stadium achieved record-breaking fan turnout, selling out nine of 11 regular-season home games and an elimination final, leading the NRL stadiums in capacity usage. Despite taking a hammering in the first game of the season in Las Vegas, the club went on to win eight of the next 10 games. We were consistently in the top four for most of the first half of the season, before disaster struck.
First co-captain Mitch Barnett tore his ACL, before star halfback Luke Metcalf went down with the same injury. Losing both was a massive blow to the team’s chances of winning a premiership, but we kept the faith anyway. Slowly though, it became evident that it wasn’t to be our year – again.
Now, we look towards 2026. Barnett is still injured, and has announced he’s leaving the club next year, citing personal reasons. He’s due back in the early rounds of this season, while Metcalf is reportedly aiming for a return in round seven. The signing of the top try scorer of the 2024 NRL season Alofiana Khan-Pereira has added much-needed strength to our wings. The depth of the club continues to grow with young talent like Leka Halasima, Demitric Vaimauga, Kayliss Fatialofa, and Tanner Stowers-Smith continuing to rise through the ranks.
The TAB has us as the 11th most likely team to win it all. That sounds about right. But supporting the Warriors has never really been about odds. It’s about standing in front of a big screen at seven years old and learning what heartbreak feels like. It’s about your dad banging on the south stand signage. It’s about passing that feeling – irrational, exhausting, strangely beautiful – down to your own son. Maybe it isn’t our year. But it’s still our team.
