Vodafone Warriors pick clear winner for Game Day Saturday

Author: Richard Becht & Photosport.nz
Timestamp: Fri 17 Apr 2020, 02:09 PM

For the second week running, Vodafone Warriors fans have declared an overwhelming winner for the classic match spot on Game Day Saturday at 3.00pm tomorrow on Sky Sport’s home of rugby league (Sky Sport 4, channel 54).

Up for voting this week were three memorable encounters with the Sydney Roosters, who would have been the club’s sixth-round opponents at Mount Smart Stadium tomorrow night until the 2020 NRL season was put on hold.

As they did with polling for the St George Illawarra Dragons last week, Vodafone Warriors fans have again spoken loud and clear.

The three matches singled out from a long list of wins against the Roosters were from 1995 (26-22), 1999 (26-16) and 2009 (17-16).

It was the 2009 match that dominated, cornering 54 per cent of the votes.

So, get set, put on your favourite Vodafone Warriors apparel and create your own lockdown atmosphere at home to watch full coverage of the 2009 battle on Game Day Saturday on Sky Sport 4 (channel 54) from 3.00pm tomorrow.

Each week the Vodafone Warriors and Sky Sport select three games from the archives featuring the Vodafone Warriors against the team they were scheduled to meet in the original draw before the 2020 season was suspended.
Next week we’ll be focusing on our would-be seventh-round opponents the Melbourne Storm in our traditional Anzac Day fixture, providing three classic battles from the files for you, the fans, to vote on for Game Day Saturday on Anzac Day.

Vodafone Warriors Game Day Saturday

3.00pm, Saturday, April 18, 2020

Sky Sport 4, Channel 54

Vodafone Warriors v Sydney Roosters

April 19, 2009

Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland

While the 2009 season had started with two wins, three losses then followed to Brisbane, South Sydney and Newcastle leaving the Vodafone Warriors under pressure to break the streak at home against the Roosters.

The stress seemed to be showing as they went to halftime 0-16 down but the great Stacey Jones, in his comeback season, inspired a revival scoring soon after halftime and then bombing to the left for first Jerome Ropati and then Manu Vatuvei to score. Now just 14-16 adrift, a Denan Kemp penalty levelled it up to eventually take the match into golden point extra time. There Jones came up with the clutch match-winning field goal.

Vodafone Warriors 17 (Jerome Ropati, Manu Vatuvei, Stacey Jones tries; Denan Kemp conversion, penalty; Stacey Jones field goal).

Sydney Roosters 16 (Iosia Soliola, Mitchell Pearce, Shane Shackleton tries; Craig Fitzgibbon 2 conversions).

Halftime: 16-0 Roosters.

Teams:

Vodafone Warriors | Lance Hohaia; Denan Kemp, Simon Mannering, Jerome Ropati, Manu Vatuvei; Joel Moon, Stacey Jones; Sam Rapira, Ian Henderson, Steve Price; Ben Matulino, Jacob Lillyman; Micheal Luck. Interchange: Patrick Ah Van, Nathan Fien, Russell Packer, Jesse Royal.

Sydney Roosters | Sam Perrett; Sonny Tuigamala, Iosia Soliola, Ben Jones, Shaun Kenny-Dowall; Braith Anasta, Mitchell Pearce; Mark O’Meley, James Aubusson, Frank-Paul Nuuausala; Nate Myles, Craig Fitzgibbon; Shane Shackleton. Interchange: Lopini Paea, Willie Mason, Jake Friend, Jordan Tansey.