There's something good happening at the Warriors this season — and in-form half Shaun Johnson gave a little insight during a lively post-match interview following the team's stunning win over the Cronulla Sharks yesterday.
Speaking to Fox Sports shortly after kicking the match-winning penalty in the 32-30 win at Shark Park, Johnson, central to the team's revival this season, let his passion show.
"Ah bro, that was off it's head," he said.
"We spoke about it at halftime. 'Do we actually believe we can go out there and do it?'
"We said some funny s... at halftime, bro. 'What a story it would be, we'll tell our grandkids about this one day. Let's go out and have a crack'.
"... Man, we are so resilient bro. I love being a part of it, it's such a good feeling."
His honesty drew plenty of praise from fans, with one on Twitter saying it "makes me cry with how much fun they are having", and another adding "people thought he was washed up but he's still a king, and he's back home where he belongs!"
Coach Andrew Webster saluted the heroics of Johnson after he helped sink his old club.
Down 20-0 at a rainsoaked PointsBet Stadium in as many minutes, the Warriors didn't take the lead until the last 90 seconds when Johnson was offered a shot at goal from 40 metres out.
Sharks prop Royce Hunt was penalised for a contentious push on Warriors back-rower Josh Curran as they chased a loose ball.
Johnson slotted it with ease, and although Cronulla were given a penalty on the fulltime siren, Nicho Hynes' effort didn't have the legs to send the game to golden point.
The victory — the Warriors' fourth in five games under Webster — moves the Kiwi outfit up to second spot for their best start to a NRL season since the 2018 campaign.
"Shaun has become this unbelievable leader in the way he leads with his actions in the tough stuff," Webster said.
"Nobody was running their shape at Shaun because they knew he could hold his gloves up.
"He stuck to the plan, didn't throw the ball around, and he was calm under pressure.
"Our kitman, Laurie Hale, had a dream he (Shaun) was going to kick a goal to win us the game, so we'll give that one to Laurie."
The Warriors had to do it tough with the slick Sharks racing out to an early lead with tries from Ronaldo Mulitalo, Teig Wilton, Will Kennedy and Sione Katoa.
Wayde Egan and Marata Niukore hit back for the Warriors, but when the latter was sent to the sin bin for a hip-drop tackle at the end of the first half it appeared a bridge too far for Webster's men.
Previous Warriors sides might have put the cue in the rack but by the time Niukore came back on, Johnson and Edward Kosi had cut the deficit to just two points.
"There's lots of ambition, we don't want to make excuses for everything and sit on the bottom," Webster said.
"We want to have a crack. The past, everyone thought we'd fall over soon — and after 15 minutes they probably thought today was the day — but the boys had other ideas."
Mulitalo and Curran traded tries but Hynes failed to convert, with Johnson's 67th minute goal tying the game up at 30-30.
Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon was left wondering how his side had capitulated so easily.
"We get ourselves in a good game, but we haven't managed it well enough," Fitzgibbon said.
"It's simple stuff like holding the ball properly. It's really frustrating when you train on it and it doesn't translate into the game."
Fitzgibbon was also left frustrated that captain Dale Finucane was sent to the sin bin for a hip-drop tackle and spent the final five minutes watching from the sidelines.
"No one wants to see them and we don't want them in the game, but they're hard to get right sometimes," Fitzgibbon said.
The Sharks still had the upper hand but when a ball went to ground, a quick thinking Curran hacked ahead.
When he was brought down by Hunt, Johnson stepped up and sealed a valuable win for his side.
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