Warriors v Dragons: Mannering starts against unbeaten Dragons

For five weeks the Warriors enchanted us with their free-wheeling nothing-to-lose approach. The Broncos brought them back to earth with last week's win in enemy territory and everybody's waiting to see if the honeymoon is over or if they are legitimate top eight contenders.

It's not as though the Warriors were bad against an injury-weakened Brisbane, but there was a faint whiff of complacency about their performance and they can't afford to take anyone lightly. Coach Stephen Kearney should have no trouble getting his side up for the unbeaten competition leaders.

There were a few rumblings after the Dragons scraped home against Souths in round five that a loss was just around the corner. Well it wasn't around the first corner, as the Dragons romped to a big win over crosstown rivals Cronulla, leaving them battered and bruised in the process.

Given their good record in Auckland over the years, it might not be around the next corner either.

Key match-up: This has all the makings of a game that will come down to how the halves influence their respective teams. Hard as it is to go past Shaun Johnson v Ben Hunt, the contest between classy five-eighths Blake Green and Gareth Widdop carries a touch more intrigue. They are similar players of a similar age and whoever is the most effective will impact heavily on the result.

For the Warriors to win: Stick to the basics and don't get caught up in their opponents' game plan. The Warriors need to make an aggressive statement in the first 20 minutes and convince the unbeaten Dragons that they're in for their toughest game thus far. A world-class performance from Johnson also wouldn't hurt.

For the Dragons to win: Weathering an expected early storm will be paramount for the competition leaders. If their hard-working forwards contain their Warriors counterparts, Widdop and Hunt will provide ample scoring opportunities for the Dragons backs.

Warriors stat attack: The Warriors are the NRL's top team for offloads with 98 in six games, well ahead of second-best Manly (82). Winger David Fusitu’a has scored 10 tries in his past five games at Mt Smart Stadium.

Dragons stat attack: St George Illawarra seemingly have the wood on the Warriors, winning 13 of their past 14 meetings. The Dragons are the NRL's most prolific attacking team with an average of almost 33 points per game.

And another thing: Dragons five-eighth Gareth Widdop will play his 100th game for the club on Friday. The Englishman is having an outstanding season, leading the NRL in points, try assists, goals and line-break assists.

Prediction: Dragons by 13