Wooden spoon worries for Warriors

Personal pride and the desire to suitably send off some of their departing stars is set to spark a late-season surge by the Sydney Roosters, starting with Sunday's NRL home clash with the Warriors.

Beaten in seven of their last eight games, the Roosters can drag the Warriors into the wooden-spoon battle if they defeat them at the Sydney Football Stadium.

Just three points separate the two teams, though the Warriors still have mathematical hopes of making the finals.

However, the New Zealand team have been road wobblers rather than warriors this year, losing their last seven games on Australian soil.

A loss to the Roosters would almost certainly end any lingering finals aspirations and would also boost the Roosters' prospects of offloading the dreaded wooden spoon.

"We're going to try and win as many games as we can in these last few weeks, there is a lot of personal pride," Roosters centre Mitchell Aubusson told AAP.

"That alone is enough motivation for us to start winning.

"There's three or four really senior guys leaving this year and we'd really like to send those guys out on a good note."

Among the players leaving the Roosters after this season are representative forwards Craig Fitzgibbon and Mark O'Meley, Shane Shackleton and Iosia Soliola.

The Warriors, who have lost their last three games, will be looking for more composure this weekend.

"The boys are trying too hard sometimes, almost too hard," Warriors coach Ivan Cleary told NZPA.

"As a result of that, everyone gets a bit too eager and you lose your shape."

The Warriors suffered a big blow after losing skipper and forward leader Steve Price, who was ruled out after being knocked out in the State of Origin match last Wednesday.

They will blood a new five-eighth in 20-year-old Isaac John.

"He's got a good kicking game, he passes the ball nicely and he's got some good vision," Cleary said of John.

Adding some spice to Sunday's game is the presence in the Roosters' side of four New Zealand internationals and a couple of other players born in that country.

The two teams has had some close and stirring battles in recent years, with the Warriors winning 17-16 in Auckland earlier this year.

"The Warriors are such a big physical team, they are very skilful and they throw the ball around a lot," Aubusson said.

"If one or two people are off their game, they are really going to make you pay, so everyone has got to be really switched on and do their job."

-AAP