Can the Dolphins win on their finals debut?

Having only been in the NRL since 2023, the Dolphins have quickly established themselves as a competitive side in the league.

After being one win away in 2024 and 2025 from making the finals, the Dolphins finally broke the top eight barrier in 2026, finishing in the top four, which secured a double chance.

As a result of their third-place finish, they’ll have to make the long trek to Auckland to face the Warriors for the chance of securing a home preliminary final.

Whilst the Dolphins will have their work cut out trying to stop the competition’s best attack, Ben Gardiner believes the NRL’s youngest club is capable of winning its first-ever finals game.

But on the proviso that they can avoid conceding the first two scores.   

“I see the Dolphins beating the Warriors,” Gardiner told SEN’s Front Office with Vossy.

“The right side of the Dolphins, I think, is just gonna be too strong for the left side of the Warriors, in terms of attack versus defence.

“The Dolphins need to get their (defence) on.

“We've talked a lot of times around the Dolphins doing a better job at the start of the game. Again, they were third to score on the weekend.

“They need to be first to score or at least second, but they were third to score again, which in a big game, you think about how the Warriors play, they're gonna wanna get them into a long cycle; they gonna wanna keep the ball in play.

“In a game like that, I think the Dolphins have the players that can open the game up if they are given any space at all.

“But I think that type of game is a low-scoring game.

"If the Dolphins allow the Warriors to get two scores ahead, things are gonna get out of control pretty quickly.”

The Warriors will host the Dolphins at Go Media Stadium in Auckland on Saturday afternoon.

SEN will have live coverage of the match from 12pm AEST with Crunch Time NRL across our radio network and on the SEN app.