Warriors lock Erin Cark on NRL loss to Penrith Panthers - The Big League Podcast
Warriors lock Erin Clark feels assured their looming NRL rematch with the Penrith Panthers in August will have a much different result.
The Kiwi side fell to a 20-18 defeat in Sydney’s top-of-the-table bout, leaving them four points adrift of the Panthers on the ladder, but still second overall.
The loss – their third of the season – capped off another turbulent week off the field, with news Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is out for the season due to an ACL injury.
The Warriors will get another crack at the Panthers on August 7 in Auckland.
Clark delivered another all-round solid display, with 164m from 18 runs and 38 tackles. The lock told The Big League Podcast it was still one of their most complete performances of 2026.
“After the game, I didn’t know whether to celebrate. Even though we lost, I thought we played one of our best games this year, but we missed the mark icing moments.
“When we meet them again, we’ll be way better for it. We learned a lot as a team because when you play teams like Penrith, when you get those moments, you have to ice them, and we’ll be better for it.
“That’s like finals intensity, and I think we showed that we’re good enough to be there, and I’m pretty confident if we play them again, we’ll get them.
“When we get our footy on, we play our best, and I think our best footy can beat any team in the NRL.”
The Warriors had three tries overturned by the officials due to offside, a forward pass and a knock-on respectively.
They came off the back of a stellar kicking display in the red zone from halves Chanel Harris-Tavita and Te Maire Martin, peppering the Panthers’ back corners with bombs.
Clark denies there was any frustration in the group.
“We’re so connected, and we just move on to our next job. If you dwell on things like that, that’s when you lose. For us, it’s ‘win the next play’.”
Ahead of the loss to the Panthers, the Warriors recorded their best-ever start to an NRL season, having won their last six games in a row.
The Kiwi side are looking to improve on their sixth-place finish last year, which culminated in a first-round loss to Penrith in the playoffs.
Clark said they refuse to look too far ahead.
“We try and win every day, win every training session, and then when the game comes around, we try and win the game. Our mindset now is winning every training, coming into games confident we did the work in the week, and that’s all we can do.”
The Warriors will collect a guaranteed two points from the bye this week before hosting the Cronulla Sharks at Mt Smart on June 13.
Nathan Limm has been a journalist with Newstalk ZB and the NZ Herald since 2020. He covered the Netball World Cup in Cape Town in 2023, hosts The Big League Podcast and commentates rugby and netball for Gold Sport.