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Scotty & Izzy live on SN ExtraRon Griffiths: Late Broughton withdrawal derailed Wahine Warriors
Savannah Lendich Jonkers • July 15th, 2026 5:40 pm
Gayle Broughton | Photo: John Davidson/Photosport
A late injury to star five-eighth Gayle Broughton forced the Warriors into a last-minute reshuffle, contributing to a disappointing defeat in Canberra.
Broughton’s absence was a significant blow for the Warriors as just a week earlier, the former sevens playmaker had been the difference in the teams season-opening victory over the Bulldogs.
Warriors coach Ron Griffiths described that round one encounter as being “on a knife’s edge” with Broughton taking control and steering her side to victory with a standout performance.
After carving up the Hamilton pitch, the 30-year-old was awarded the maximum Dally M points, underlining her influence on the contest.
Ron Griffiths on turning Black Ferns Sevens stars into NRLW weapons | The Six Again Podcast
However, the Warriors were left scrambling when Broughton became unavailable with a quad injury on the eve of their round two trip to Canberra.
“It happened the night before we were travelling,” Griffiths told Sport Nation’s Scotty & Izzy on Tuesday.
“No doubt players sort of weren't able to deal with it and function as required on game day, but we need to be better than that too as a team because those things do happen in sport.”
The disruption didn’t end there with other key players sidelined with injury and suspensions.
Gayle Broughton | Photo: Photosport
The Warriors lost Mya Hill-Moana to suspension, Laishon Albert-Jones to a calf injury as well as Payton Takimoana to a shoulder injury after round one.
Kaiyah Atai broke her thumb in a pre-season match against the Broncos, while Mele Hufanga, Anastasia Sekene and Matekino Gray are also sidelined with injury. All are expected to return by round five, except for Tyra Wetere, who is out for the year with an ACL injury.
Left winger Lavinia Tauhalaliku was also ruled out at the last minute after scoring two tries in round one.
And with few available players to choose from for selection, Griffiths said “17 certainly made it hard, we were juggling things around, that's for sure.”
The wounds contributed to a difficult afternoon as Canberra capitalised on the Warriors’ lack of cohesion, resulting in a 42-16 loss for the Warriors.
“Obviously not the result we were chasing,” Griffiths said.
“I still think there's some areas where obviously we needed to be better and we just weren't on the same page on the weekend.”
Mackenzie Wiki scores a try for the Raiders | Photo: Photosport
Determined to bounce back quickly, Griffiths said the players took ownership of the situation following the defeat and planned extra training for the squad elected to return to the field to work through their combinations and improve communication ahead of a short turnaround.
“We'd scheduled to have tonight off training, but on the way back they just decided that they thought they needed to come in,” Griffiths said.
“So they've organised training for tonight just to go through some role clarity and make sure that we're comfortable leading into this weekend because of the short turnaround.”
The Warriors have received a timely boost for their round three clash at Mt Smart against the Cowboys, with prop Mya Hill-Moana returning from suspension and Lavinia Tauhalaliku recovering from injury and named on the wing, with Stacey Waaka shifting back to centre.
Broughton is expected to return to the squad within 1-2 weeks.
Warriors team vs Raiders:
1. Apii Nicholls, 2. Lavinia Tauhalaliku, 3. Tysha Ikenasio, 4. Stacey Waaka, 5. Ocean Tierney, 6. Emmanita Paki, 7. Patricia Maliepo, 8. Annetta Nuuausala, 9. Jay Huriwai, 10. Ashlee Matapo, 11. Maarire Puketapu, 12. Shakira Baker, 13. Christabelle Onesemo-Tuilaepa
Bench: 14. Capri Paekau, 15. Harata Butler, 16. Mya Hill-Moana, 17. Ivana Lauitiiti, 18. Metanoia Fetalaiga, 19. Natalia Hickling, 20. Kaiyah Atai
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