AUCKLAND - AUGUST 24: A fight breaks out between Warriors and Broncos players during the round 24 NRL match between the Warriors and the Brisbane Broncos at Ericsson Stadium on August 24, 2003 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Nigel Marple/Getty Images) Photo: Nigel Marple
Analysis - It's hard for the Warriors to have an official derby match, given that they are based 2155km away from the nearest other NRL team. Until the seemingly endless talk of another New Zealand-based team is actioned, it's fair to say the Warriors must make do with historical rivalries rather than geographical proximity to get just that much more fired up about fixtures.
The Storm have a pretty good case. The Anzac Day fixture is the most pageantry-heavy event of the season for the Warriors, but given it only takes place in Melbourne and the Storm always win, it feels pretty one-sided. So really, the first team the Warriors ever played stand as the closest thing they have to a proper rival, at least for those of a certain age who can remember back to when they first started playing.
Here's a look at the great moments between the Warriors and Broncos, as they prepare to do battle in Saturday night's NRL Preliminary Final:
The first game, 1995
It started with a bang 28 years ago at Ericsson Stadium, with the mobile phone company not the only throwback sponsor no longer in existence. DB Bitter adorned the Warriors' strip, Travelodge was on the Broncos' and the field was ringed with Ansett Airlines signage. On the pitch, Phil Blake had the honour of scoring the first try in the Warriors' history, but an Allan Langer masterclass saw the Broncos home 25-22.
First Warriors win, 2001
It took six long years for the Warriors to chalk one up over the Broncos, and they did so in a watershed season for the club. Coming back from the brink of extinction in the wash-up of the Super League era, the Warriors made their debut appearance in the finals thanks in part to a 13-12 win over the defending premier Broncos, at Ericsson. Stacey Jones was the hero, with a field goal to break the deadlock in the final 10 minutes.
Kevin Campion decks Shane Webcke, 2002
A year later, the two sides met again in Auckland in a game where the Warriors scored a memorable try by Ivan Cleary, that was set up by a bit of brilliance by Ali Lauiti'iti, but mostly remembered for a very one-sided scrap between two former Broncos and Queensland team mates.
Campion had been a revelation for the Warriors, bringing a hard-nosed attitude that the team desperately needed, and Webcke made the mistake of reacting to a heavy tackle near the try line. Two punches later and it was over, with Campion later joking that the two had done boxing training together, "So I knew he couldn't fight."
Sione Faumuina's over-the-head pass, 2003
So brilliant, so entertaining, so unnecessary. The Warriors were on a roll against the Broncos in the early 2000s with another win, this time at ANZ Stadium, because Suncorp Stadium was still being built. After racking up a 26-12 lead, Clinton Toopi swooped on a loose ball and it found its way to Faumuina, who could have easily strolled over the line. Instead, he flung the ball over his head to interchange forward Evarn Tuimavave to score under the posts, a play that summed up everything the Warriors were about at the time.
Two record Warriors wins, 2010
Jimmy Maloney stood as the one of the Warriors' best-ever signings in 2010, racking up a string of excellent performances, including a club record-equalling 28 points in a 48-16 flogging of the Broncos. Later that season, the Warriors turned it on again to win 36-4 at Mt Smart.
Magic Johnson, 2011
Much has been made this year of Shaun Johnson turning back the clock form-wise, and it's likely the try he scored at Suncorp in 2011 is exactly the moment in time people are thinking of. His dazzling run around, through and away from half the Broncos team was the individual try of the year, in a season where the Warriors made the grand final for a second time.
The Broncos got the last laugh in that game though, with a Peter Wallace field goal snatching a dramatic 21-20 win.
Leaking points at Suncorp, 2013
This was the game that Russell Packer decided to pee on the field before kickoff, but it's also the highest score the Warriors have ever put on the Broncos.
Glenn 'The Fish' Fisiiahi, Manu Vatuvei, Konrad Hurrell and Thomas Leuluai all got two tries each in the 56-18 hiding.
The craziest part? While the Broncos had been depleted by the Origin period, the Warriors were sitting last on the table at the time.
Lets Gone Warriors, 2013
While it happened in the same game, this piece of Warriors lore deserves its own entry.
Tyson Ella, a Kiwi living in Brisbane, made a sign that's gone down in history for its hilarious unintelligibility that somehow perfectly encapsulated the experience of being a Warriors fan.
Ellis has claimed the misspelling of 'go' was intentional, which makes him some kind of comedic genius.
The Napier debacle, 2023
What do you remember more from this one - the Warriors' spirited comeback against a very slick Origin-depleted Baby Broncos to lose a pulsating game 24-22, or the fact that a regiment-sized group of locals took it upon themselves to invade McLean Park?
It's debatable whether the latter had any effect on the former, but it certainly has made the club think twice about taking any games outside of Auckland in the future.
