Webster out to bring down fortress he helped build
Scott Bailey |
Warriors coach Andrew Webster has the chance to end the Penrith dynasty he helped create.
The man in charge of Penrith’s attack for their first two premierships in 2021 and 2022, Webster now meets his old club again in Saturday night’s do-or-die final.
A clear mutual respect remains between Webster and the Panthers since he left in 2023, before taking the Warriors to the finals in his first year in charge.
Penrith players openly speak about the impact he had on their football, while there are few bigger supporters of Webster than counterpart Ivan Cleary.
But come Saturday in Auckland, Webster is ready to stop the Panthers’ premiership run at four.
“They’re a great team. I have a lot of respect for them,” Webster said.
“One year they are going to lose, I don’t know when that is. Hopefully it is this week.
“You have to beat those good teams somewhere anyway. It could be any part of the finals series you have to do it. So it doesn’t hurt to do it now.”
Webster is not the only key architect of Penrith’s dynasty at the Warriors, with prop James Fisher-Harris one of the most important players of their four premierships.
A few months ago, the prospect of the Warriors and Panthers duelling in an elimination final looked unlikely.
The Panthers were last on the ladder after 12 rounds and nowhere near finals, before turning their year around to sit among the premiership favourites.
The Warriors, in contrast, spent 17 weeks of this season sitting safely inside the top four before the season-ending injuries to Mitch Barnett and Luke Metcalf told.
They have now lost seven of their past 11 and enter this weekend as the biggest outsiders, but Webster insists his side should not be written off.
“I can understand why people would have doubts,” Webster said.
“But I think the true faithful know that when we play our next footy it looks good.
“I know there is belief here and belief from every single person at Mt Smart on the weekend, from the top of the country to the bottom.
“Rather than worrying about how much everyone thinks we can’t do it, I’m more excited and focused on the ones who think we can.”
Cleary is also well aware Saturday night could prove a difficult hurdle for Penrith.
A former Warriors player and coach himself, he pointed out this weekend the club’s best finals win have all come against the odds.
Think Canterbury 2003, Melbourne 2008, the Storm again in 2011.
And as far as Warriors players are concerned they are ready to repeat the storyline on Saturday night.
“Where we are is because of the belief and connection we have in the team,” Barnett said.
“We are confident inside our four walls.
“We’ve got a really steely, hardened mindset because we know we need to get better.
“Finals footy is about an 80-minute performance of hard footy. We definitely have the mindset for it at the moment.”
AAP
