Wests Tigers 26 Warriors 28

AFTER narrowly missing a sideline conversion on full-time that would have sent yesterday's clash at Leichhardt Oval into extra-time, Wests Tigers captain Brett Hodgson approached Warriors great Ruben Wiki and told him he had done so in order not to spoil the celebrations for his 300th premiership match.

"I said, 'Aw, come on … but I think the crowd got their money's worth'," Wiki said after helping his side survive not one but two second-half comebacks from the Tigers.

Rival coaches Tim Sheens and Ivan Cleary may not have been impressed about the way the match unfolded, but those fans in the 15,027 crowd who foolishly walked out of such a gripping contest before it was over would surely be wishing they had stayed, for Benji Marshall put Taniela Tuiaki over for two tries in the final three minutes.

However, few could dispute Cleary's assertion that it would have been an "injustice" if the Tigers had managed to snatch victory after they trailed 16-0 after 29 minutes, 28-16 with three minutes remaining, and 28-22 before Tuiaki crossed for his third try of the day 12 seconds before full-time. "It was crunch time today. A loss … I don't know if it would have killed us but it would have been pretty close," Cleary said.

With momentum swinging the home side's way after the Warriors had pulled away from them at 16-16 in the 50th minute only to again be run down late in the match, Cleary was preparing for golden point extra-time as Hodgson lined up the late kick in front of hundreds of fans wearing the same coloured Balmain or Wests Tigers jerseys on the Leichhardt hill.

A former leading goal kicker with Manly, North Sydney, the Roosters and the Warriors, Cleary said he felt for the Tigers fullback - "but not too much". "He'd be disappointed," Cleary said. "It's the ultimate, I guess, for goal kickers. It's one of those things that you sort of dream about but you probably dread a little bit as well."

Hodgson, too, thought he was going to land the goal and believed his kick was on target as the ball left the boot, but it swung away to the left.

"It's what you want, as a goal kicker you want to be able to get into those situations sometimes, but unfortunately today just wasn't to be," Hodgson said. "It didn't miss by too much. I was pretty confident of getting it. I'd been kicking them well, one hit the upright from the sideline. But I would have liked us not to put ourselves in that position at the end anyway."

With props Todd Payten, Keith Galloway and Ryan O'Hara on the injured list, the Tigers were unable to match it for size with the Warriors. Sheens said that had impacted on the performance of Marshall and his other main playmakers, halfback Mathew Head and hooker Robbie Farah.

Still, the try Marshall laid on for Tuiaki in the 33rd minute suggested the Kiwis five-eighth was close to regaining his best form. It was later being compared to the one he set up for Pat Richards in the Tigers' 2005 grand final win. He, Head and Farah were all involved in the giant winger's last try, as the Tigers spun the ball from one side of the field to the other on the last tackle of the set.

The front row injury crisis also gave another opportunity for 23-year-old rookie Daine Laurie, who Sheens indicated would retain his place for the Tigers' next game, against Melbourne at Campbelltown on July 14.

"He has become a cult hero very quickly," Sheens said. "He got a bigger cheer coming out than the team did when it started."

Unusually for an opposition player, Wiki was also cheered loudly in acknowledgement of his milestone. But despite having introduced the former New Zealand captain into first grade at Canberra in 1993, Sheens said he hadn't taken particular interest in Wiki's performance yesterday.

"At the end of the day I gave him a jumper, and when the game was over we could shake hands, but prior to that I'd rather if he broke a leg. You know what I mean," he said.

NZ WARRIORS 28 (S Fai N Fien I Henderson L Hohaia S Rapira tries L Hohaia 2 M Witt 2 goals) bt WESTS TIGERS 26 (T Tuiaki 3 R Farah C Lawrence tries B Hodgson 3 goals) at Leichhardt Oval. Referee: S Lyons. Crowd: 15,027.