While the One New Zealand Warriors will play just their third finals match in 12 years tonight, they have a team which boasts solid play-offs and grand finals experience for tonight’s NRL semifinal against the Newcastle Knights.
The 19 players in the game day squad have a total of 83 finals matches between them.
Tohu Harris, Dylan Walker, Shaun Johnson, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Marata Niukore and Te Maire Martin have all played in grand finals with Harris and Walker both in premiership-winning sides.
Harris and Walker have played 13 finals matches, Niukore 10, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak nine, Nicoll-Klokstad seven and Johnson six.
Making their first finals appearances against Penrith last week were centre Adam Pompey and Rocco Berry, winger Marcelo Montoya, hooker Wayde Egan, second rower Jackson Ford and interchange players Josh Curran and Freddy Lussick.
In contrast, the Knights have a combined total of 50 finals appearances across their 19-man squad, centre Dane Gagai accounting for 15 of those while eight players made their finals debut in last week’s win against Canberra and three (Adam Clune, Brodie Jones and Fa’amanu Brown) haven’t appeared in a play-off before.
