Shaun Johnson. Photo: Photosport
The Warriors have been dealt a withering blow ahead of the NRL finals, with injury ruling star halfback Shaun Johnson out of their clash with defending premiers Penrith.
Coach Andrew Webster confirmed Johnson, who he dubbed "the best player in the comp" won't play in Saturday's qualifying final because of a calf problem he exacerbated at training earlier in the week.
It is a major blow to the Warriors' hopes of toppling the competition's top-ranked team, with 32-year-old Johnson having enjoyed a supreme season, thrusting him into favouritism to be crowned the NRL's Dally M overall player of the year.
With the Warriors still alive in the finals series if they lose to the Panthers, Webster indicated he didn't want to risk his key playmaker in the club's first appearance in the post-season since 2018.
"He hurt his calf. We thought he was going to be ok. He trained yesterday but just pulled up too sore," Webster told reporters at Sydney Airport.
"Any finals game is important. If it's a broken hand, you could try and play with it because it can't get any worse.
"But when it's a soft tissue injury you have to make sure you're careful. So we just can't risk it. He ran and it pulled up sore afterwards so we made a decision to pull him out.
"He's the best player in the comp this year, we're going to miss him, but we've got so many players who can stand up, and we've done it all year. So many players haven't been available for selection and we've still found a way to win.
"Hopefully it's a long finals series, and we're confident we can still win on Saturday."
Versatile veteran Dylan Walker, who was named on the interchange bench, shapes as the likely man to come in and partner Te Maire Martin in the halves.
An upset of the Panthers would guarantee the Warriors an extra week of rest before a home preliminary final in Auckland in two weeks' time.
However, if they lose, the Warriors will only have a week off before hosting the winner of Sunday's Newcastle-Canberra elimination final in a sudden-death encounter.
Johnson quipped to journalists that he hoped his team would give him an extra week to recover.
"Hopefully we don't have to play next week," he said.
"We've come here to win a game and we're going to do that.
"We've got players who can step in. We've done it all year, we've filled a role and that's why we're here. I just think our team has never been about one person. It's no different now. We'll be right."
- RNZ
