The Aporia · Live: Warriors make late changes for semifinal with Knights at Eden Park

Live: Warriors make late changes for semifinal with Knights at Eden Park

Read the original at ABC News (AU) ↗

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Doyle, M. (2026, September 20). Live: Warriors make late changes for semifinal with Knights at Eden Park. ABC News (AU). https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-20/nrl-finals-live-warriors-knights-eden-park/107155146

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

The article reports on late lineup changes for the NRL semifinal match between the New Zealand Warriors and the Newcastle Knights at Eden Park. The Warriors have swapped Leka Halasima and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak into their starting lineup, replacing Adam Pompey and Alofiana Khan-Pereira who are now listed as substitutes. The game is set to start at 4:05 pm AEST (New South Wales time) with updates available through a live blog and radio coverage.

Written by AI on 2026-09-20, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

The Newcastle Knights secured their spot in the NRL preliminary finals with a nail-biting 12-10 victory over the Warriors at Eden Park on September 20. The game saw Mat Croker, Newcastle's lock forward and an unsung hero of the season, play every minute this year, showcasing his pivotal role in the team’s dynamic attack by linking up with halfbacks to create scoring opportunities.

However, controversy surrounded the final moments when a potential penalty against Tyson Frizell for what is deemed an "escort" play was not reviewed due to the Warriors having already used their captain's challenge. This oversight could have given the Warriors a chance at leveling the score or extending the match into extra time, leading to the Warriors contacting the NRL for clarification on several contentious decisions during the game.

The Knights' remarkable turnaround from wooden spooners last season to reaching the preliminary finals has made them an inspiration within the league, with other struggling teams like the Tigers and Dragons looking closely at what Newcastle did right this year. The Penrith Panthers now await the winner of this match in Sydney next week for a place in the grand final.

Written for “NRL Finals Knights Warriors” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 5 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

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Hedges 4 of 33 claims Outlet record 61/100

Newcastle’s rise from spoon to prelim is remarkable. But the Panthers are the big winners Different event

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Hedges 1 of 33 claims Outlet record 61/100

“Article A describes live updates for an NRL semifinal match between Warriors and Knights at Eden Park. Article B discusses the results of the match and its implications but focuses more on Penrith as winners and Newcastle's rise, not the same specific moment.”

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ABC News (AU)

Hedges 1 of 2 claims Outlet record 68/100

“Article A describes live updates and changes for an upcoming Warriors vs Knights game, while Article B discusses a potential disciplinary action against a referee after a previous semifinal match with different scores.”

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

0 of 9 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

Publisher signals

68/100

ABC News (AU)'s corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Sports

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-09-20 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

ABC News (AU) · 4588 article(s) · 10 correction(s) detected

Running correction rate · 10 correction(s)

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Who wrote this

Michael Doyle

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Topics

Knights NRL Roosters Sharks Warriors

Subjects

NRL ORG · 8× Warriors ORG · 6× Adam Pompey PERSON · 3× Alofiana Khan-Pereira PERSON · 3× Dallin Watene-Zelezniak PERSON · 3× Knights ORG · 3× Leka Halasima PERSON · 3× New Zealand GPE · 3× Newcastle Knights ORG · 3× Sharks ORG · 2×

Narrative

Submit a comment or question Live updates NRL semifinal Warriors vs Knights Kick-off: 4:05pm AEST, 3:35pm ACST, 2:05pm AWST, 6:05pm NZST Warriors: 1 Taine Tuaupiki, 2 Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 3 Ali Leiataua, 22 Leka Halasima, 23 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, 6 Chanel Harris-Tavita, 7 Te Maire Martin, 8 James Fisher-Harris, 9 Wayde Egan, 10 Mitchell Barnett, 11 Kurt Capewell, 12 Jacob Laban, 13 Erin Clark; Interchange: 4 Adam Pompey, 5 Alofiana Khan-Pereira, 14 Sam Healey, 15 Tanner Stowers-Smith, 16 Demitric Vaimauga, 17 Eddie Ieremia-Toeava Knights: 1 Kalyn Ponga, 2 Dominic Young, 3 Dane Gagai, 4 Bradman Best, 5 Greg Marzhew, 6 Fletcher Sharpe, 7 Sandon Smith, 8 Tyson Frizell, 9 Phoenix Crossland, 10 Cody Hopwood, 11 Jermaine McEwen, 12 Francis Manuleleua, 13 Mat Croker; Interchange:14 Harrison Graham, 15 Lachlan Crouch, 16 Pasami Saulo, 17 Thomas Cant, 18 Fletcher Hunt, 22 Dylan Lucas Officials: Referee: Ashley Klein; Touch Judges: Phil Henderson, Tyson Brough; Senior Review Official (Bunker): Chris Butler New: Filters Choose what information you see below by using filters Key Event Warriors team list The Warriors have made two late changes to their side. Leka Halasima (22) and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak (23) have been named in the starting side at centre and wing.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-20

🔮 The winner will face the Penrith Panthers in Sydney during next week's preliminary final weekend, while the loser's premiership hopes end.

2026-09-20 · ABC News (AU)

Live: Warriors make late changes for semifinal with Knights at Eden Park · assertive framing

Claims (9 extracted, 0 hedged)

Fri, 11 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Rabbitohs 10, Knights 20 Sat, 12 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Warriors 16, Dolphins 26 Sat, 12 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Sharks 26, Cowboys 16 Sun, 13 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Panthers 19, Roosters 12 Sat, 19 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Roosters 46, Sharks 10 Sun, 20 Sept, 4:05 pm, Game not started, Warriors versus Knights live NRL finals live: asserted

Game → start → NRL

The New Zealand Warriors are in a new home, hosting the Newcastle Knights in an NRL semifinal at Eden Park. asserted

Warriors → host → Park

The winner will face the Penrith Panthers in Sydney during next week's preliminary final weekend, while the loser's premiership hopes end. asserted

hopes → face → weekend

Halasima → submit → centre

Adam Pompey (4) and Alofiana Khan-Pereira (5) have gone back to the interchange bench. asserted

Pompey → go → bench

Jett Cleary misses out, and Jackson Ford is unavailable after sustaining an injury last weekend. asserted

Ford → miss → injury

New Zealand Warriors vs Newcastle Knights - 4:05pm AEST: NSW, Queensland, ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, PNG - 3:35pm ACST: South Australia, Northern Territory - 2:05pm AWST: Western Australia - 6:05pm NZST: New Zealand, Fiji - 7:05pm: Tonga, Samoa Key Event Welcome to the ABC Sport NRL live blog Good afternoon, Australia. Welcome back to ABC Sport's live digital coverage of the 2026 NRL premiership season. This afternoon, Auckland's Eden Park hosts a knockout semifinal between the New Zealand Warriors and Newcastle Knights. asserted

Park → welcome → Warriors

The winner will face the Penrith Panthers in Sydney during next week's preliminary final weekend, while the loser's premiership hopes end. asserted

hopes → face → weekend

Join the conversation and let us know your thoughts on the NRL finals in the comment section below. asserted

us → join → section