ANALYSIS: The Warriors may be heading down the proven veteran path again with Broncos and Queensland State of Origin forward Kurt Capewell reportedly on their radar.
A Daily Telegraph report from Sydney at the weekend said Capewell, 30, was being offered a three-year contract to join the Warriors immediately and had toured the Warriors’ facilities in Auckland and dined with coach Andrew Webster.
NRL clubs generally don’t comment on transfer targets until a deal is done, but it would be no surprise if Capewell was on their shopping list given his past relationship with Webster.
The pair worked together at Penrith where the second rower was in the Panthers’ 2021 NRL grand final winning team and Webster was Ivan Cleary’s coaching assistant.
Capewell joined the Broncos in 2022 on a three-year contract due to expire at the end of 2024.
He was brought to Brisbane to add experience to a young Broncos pack and played in their 2023 grand final defeat against his former Penrith teammates.
Capewell has played 139 NRL games since his 2016 debut with the Sharks and has represented Queensland in nine State of Origin games between 2020 and 2022.
The Daily Telegraph report stated the Warriors saw Capewell filling the void left by Josh Curran, who was granted an early release to join the Bulldogs on a multi-year contract
Some Warriors fans on supporters forums have welcomed the Capewell speculation, but there has also been some scepticism around his age and whether his signing could hold back younger players.
The Warriors, have, however, had great service from other over-30 signings in the past.
Tough backrower Kevin Campion was 30 when he joined in 2001 after two titles with the Broncos.
He only had two seasons in Auckland, but left a lasting impression with his toughness and skill.
The Warriors swooped for two impressive veterans in 2005 when Steve Price, 31, and Ruben Wiki, 32, joined after titles with the Bulldogs and the Raiders, respectively.
Price, an Australian international and Queensland State of Origin stalwart, played 91 games in five seasons at the Warriors, became a respected captain and earned State of Origin call-ups from Auckland.
He remained living in New Zealand long after hanging up his boots, buying a supermarket in Waipu, Northland.
Wiki – a member of the New Zealand Rugby League and NRL Halls of Fame – made 87 appearances across four years and extended his Kiwis test career while with the Warriors and became a cult hero. He remains a community ambassador for the club.
The Warriors swooped for Australian second rower Ryan Hoffman, 31, in 2015 after a career which included a Challenge Cup win for the Wigan Warriors and an NRL title with the Storm.
Hoffman captained the Warriors in 2016 and stayed through to 2017 when he lost his place and the skipper’s role in his final season, but the Warriors still got 60 games from him in the twilight of his career.
Admittedly, a more recent Warriors acquisition of a 30-something forward didn’t go so well.
Ben Murdoch-Masila – 30 when signed in 2021 – played 27 games before leaving for the Dragons at the ned of 2022.
But he came from five seasons in Super League whereas Capewell is a proven NRL performer.
The Warriors may also be mindful that two of their best performers in 2023 were over-30s.
Captain Tohu Harris is 31, with 220 NRL games under his belt since his debut with the Storm in 2013.
Scrumhalf Shaun Johnson, 33, earned a new deal after the best season of his career, culminating in a Dally M award and being anointed by his NRL peers as the competition’s best player of the year.
Capewell would bolster the experience quotient in the Warriors squad and supply ballast ahead of prop Addin Fonua-Blake’s likely departure for Australia in 2025.
So could older turn out to be bolder?
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