The Warriors are set to make a comeback to the NRLW (National Rugby League Women’s) in 2025.
The league is getting bigger next season, with a total of 12 teams playing, including the Warriors. A while back, in 2020, because traveling between New Zealand and Australia was uncertain, the Warriors didn’t join in. Instead, they had a team made up of players from Australia. Then, in 2021, the team decided not to play in the NRLW because it was costing a lot of money, especially with all the challenges brought by Covid.
Cameron George, who’s in charge at the Warriors, is really excited about the team getting back into the NRLW. He knows the fans are eager to see their team play again. The club is now starting to get everything ready, like choosing a main coach and some star players, but they haven’t shared who these will be just yet.
The plan for the games includes about eight weeks of getting ready before the season, 11 weeks of regular games, and then two weeks for the finals. Nadene Conlon, a big name in New Zealand’s rugby league and once a captain for the Kiwi Ferns, has been working on getting more women into rugby and making a way for them to join the Warriors.
Krystal Rota, who played for the Warriors when the NRLW first started, is also thrilled about the team’s return. She thinks this is a great chance to bring back some of the New Zealand players who went abroad to play, like she did, because there weren’t opportunities at home.
Another new team joining the NRLW in 2025 is the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs. So, the teams we’ll see playing include the Brisbane Broncos, Canberra Raiders, Bulldogs, Cronulla Sutherland Sharks, Gold Coast Titans, Newcastle Knights, North Queensland Cowboys, Warriors, Parramatta Eels, St George Illawarra Dragons, Sydney Roosters, and Wests Tigers.
