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Warriors Star Dallin Watene-Zelezniak Sidelined At Least Six Weeks
Jonty Dine, Sports Reporter
Warriors v Storm (preseason)
Kickoff: 3:30pm
FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton
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NZ Warriors will be without star winger Dallin Watene-Zalezniak for at least the first six weeks of the NRL season.
Coach Andrew Webster confirmed Watene-Zalezniak could be sidelined for up to 12 weeks with an injury sustained in a pre-season clash with Cronulla Sharks, but was not exactly sure how long he would need to recuperate from surgery on his wrist.
"We need to wait a bit longer, but it won't be before round six and could be round 12," he said.
Webster said the winger will leave a void across the early rounds.
"Dallin is a world-class player and when he gets an injury like that, we'll miss him. It's one of those weird things and that's part of footy."
However, Webster said the injury opens the door to wider squad members.
"That's why we have a squad," he said. "Sometimes depth is our biggest threat.
"We've got Rocco Berry, who should be back early rounds. We also have some other good kids coming through."
In another change to the 2024 backline, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck appears to have made the permanent shift from centre to the wing.
"Roger needs the ball and we want Charnze to be our fullback," Webster said. "To have him, Charnze and Dallin if he's fit, that's a pretty cool combination there - a triple threat.
"Every forward in the NRL doesn't want to tackle Roger."
The Warriors will play their final pre-season match against the Storm in Hamilton on Saturday, before kicking off their campaign against Canberra Raiders in Las Vegas on 2 March.
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