Warriors hooker Issac Luke and second-rower Tohu Harris are racing to prove their fitness before the team travels across to the Gold Coast for Sunday’s NRL clash against the Titans.
The two Kiwi internationals took limited part in training this afternoon and will undergo fitness tests tomorrow morning before the side flies across the Tasman ahead of the match at Cbus Super Stadium.
Luke sat out the latter half of the session after re-aggravating a pre-existing calf injury in last Sunday’s loss to Melbourne, while Harris ran with his knee heavily strapped as he prepares to return following three weeks on the sidelines.
Coach Stephen Kearney admitted both players still have boxes to tick before being cleared to travel and said there was a chance the pair may have to remain in Auckland.
The Warriors hadn’t played a game at home for more than 1000 days, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but didn’t disappoint home fans with a much-needed two points.
Harris scored the game’s first try, much to the delight of a rocking fanbase, and along with under-pressure half Shaun Johnson, was instrumental in the win.
The skipper views the result as the ideal launching pad to kickstart a turnaround, with the club sitting in 13th on the ladder.
“I certainly think this is a performance that we need to build on the back of,” he said.
“We’ve had a tough run the past couple of months. We wanted to wipe the slate clean and start fresh today, and I thought we did a good job of that.
“We can’t go backwards now, we’ve got to build off the back of it and we’ve shown we can put the effort in for each other.
