Denver Test Kiwis Issac Luke and Peta Hiku will both start for the Vodafone Warriors in tonight’s 16th-round NRL match against Cronulla at Mount Smart Stadium (8.00pm kick-off).
They both took part in the final training run yesterday after arriving home from Denver early on Wednesday morning.
Head coach Stephen Kearney has confirmed Luke will start at hooker after making his 43rd Test appearance in the Mile High Stadium clash against England on Saturday.
Karl Lawton, who was originally named to start at hooker, moves to the bench with Sam Cook omitted from the extended bench.
Hiku is now facing another positional switch after being called on to line up on the right wing replacing David Fusitu’a, who hasn’t fully recovered from the ankle injury that ruled him out of the North Queensland encounter two weeks ago.
Confirmed on the interchange with Lawton are front rowers Chris Satae and Bunty Afoa plus utility Jazz Tevaga.
VODAFONE WARRIORS v CRONULLA-SUTHERLAND SHARKS
8.00pm, Friday, June 29, 2018
Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland
Referees: Adam Gee and Chris Butler
VODAFONE WARRIORS
1 ROGER TUIVASA-SHECK (c)
23 PETA HIKU
3 ANTHONY GELLING
4 SOLOMONE KATA
5 GERARD BEALE
6 BLAKE GREEN
7 SHAUN JOHNSON
8 JAMES GAVET
24 ISSAC LUKE
10 AGNATIUS PAASI
11 ISAIAH PAPALI’I
12 TOHU HARRIS
13 SIMON MANNERING
Interchange:
9 KARL LAWTON
15 CHRIS SATAE
16 BUNTY AFOA
17 JAZZ TEVAGA
HEAD COACH | STEPHEN KEARNEY
