Kodi came late to the party and had little to celebrate

Playmaker Kodi Nikorima said while arriving at the Warriors in the middle of the Telstra Premiership season wasn't ideal, it's not to blame for his patchy form or the club missing the finals in 2019.

Nikorima signed with the Warriors from the Brisbane Broncos in May and made a flying start, slotting straight into the halves alongside Blake Green and helping the side to back-to-back wins against the Dragons and Panthers.

But the joy was short-lived.

The club won just four of 13 games after that, while Nikorima struggled with an ankle injury and was dropped to the bench for several matches.

Ahead of facing the Canberra Raiders in their final match of 2019, Nikorima said the lack of preparation this year is no excuse, but he is confident a full pre-season in Auckland will help him improve in 2020.   

"I'm not going to use any of that as an excuse as to why we may have under-performed… it's obviously been an up and down season for us," Nikorima said.

"Things didn't click straight away [when I arrived] as we probably all had hoped.

"It will be a lot better getting a full pre-season under my belt, that's for sure.

"It's obviously good when you get a full pre-season under your belt because you're training five days a week with the players you are preparing to play the season with."

With just eight wins to their name heading into round 25, the Warriors will miss the finals for the seventh time in eight years.

Veteran hooker Issac Luke, forward Ligi Sao and centre Blake Ayshford are already confirmed to be departing the club, and winger Ken Maumalo said a big part of Saturday's match at GIO Stadium is about honouring them with a good performance.

"We want to try and finish off strong and play for some of the boys having their last game, it's about trying to play well for those guys," Maumalo said.

"I played my first Test for the Kiwis with Bully [Luke], so I'll always have that special moment and it's one I cherish.

"He's been a massive influence on the guys at this club – especially the guys in his position like Nate [Roache] and Karl [Lawton] – but he's been good for my personal development too, just telling me to be better each day and keep working.

"I think he's still got a couple of years [of NRL football in him]. No matter what club he goes to I reckon he will do his job well."

Meanwhile, Warriors chief executive Cameron George this week updated players and staff on the ongoing situation surrounding the club's ownership.

Fifteen months after they partnered up to buy the Warriors, negotiations are now underway between Autex Industries and the Carlaw Heritage Trust around the future ownership of the NRL club.

George said while the situation isn't a distraction ahead of this weekend, he hopes there will be a quick resolution.

"For [the players] it is business as usual, and for the staff as well," George said.

"When they are making those tackles I am pretty sure they aren't thinking about the ownership stuff.

"I just hope for the sake of us and our fans that those discussions are concluded sooner rather than later.

"I think everyone is aware of the ramifications of long running negotiations and discussions."