Warriors v Sharks: Shaun Johnson’s gratitude to coach Andrew Webster after career revival

With his time in the NRL and with the Warriors now officially over, Shaun Johnson has hammered home his belief that coach Andrew Webster is the right man to lead the club’s charge into the future.

Despite Saturday’s 30-28 victory over the Cronulla Sharks, the Warriors will comfortably miss this season’s NRL finals, and can finish no higher than 13th with a bye in the final round of the season.

All up, 2024′s 24 matches returned just nine wins and a draw, to go with 14 defeats. Those numbers pale in comparison to 2023, when the Warriors had 16 regular season wins for a fourth-placed finish.

While there has been no public outcry from fans over Webster’s future, the goodwill of 2023 will only last so long if results don’t pick up in 2025. But if there’s any advertisement for the impact Webster can have on improving players, it’s Johnson.

From the day he arrived at the club, Webster affirmed his belief in the now 33-year-old, and their two seasons together saw Johnson hit heights he himself admits he never thought possible.

In 2022, after his return to the Warriors from the Sharks, Johnson’s 21 games returned 14 try assists and three tries. Last year, his first under Webster, saw those numbers jump dramatically to 29 assists and eight tries.

But while 2024 saw Johnson forced to manage injury after injury, Webster’s belief never waned.

On Saturday night, Johnson saved his best performance for last, setting up three tries in the Warriors’ comeback win over Cronulla.