Cronulla could be one of the biggest beneficiaries after New Zealand’s stars were delayed on their return from the United States after playing in the Denver Test, shaving at least a day off their preparation for club fixtures this weekend.
An electrical storm in Colorado grounded the Kiwis' scheduled flight out of the US, with most clubs not expecting their players to arrive back in Australia or New Zealand until Wednesday.
The Sharks travel to New Zealand to take on the Warriors on Friday night. But the Warriors will be ruing the later-than-expected arrival of their New Zealand contingent after Peta Hiku, Issac Luke and Ken Maumalo all travelled overseas to play in the Test.
Warriors coach Stephen Kearney had previously indicated he would be unlikely to play any representatives in the following NRL round.
Shaun Johnson, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Tohu Harris didn't travel to Denver for a variety of reasons including a desire to feature for their club against Cronulla.
While the Sharks had no representatives involved in the England-New Zealand match, they did have 10 players take part in rep football over the weekend. All came through their matches unscathed.
St George Illawarra are also facing issues with their representative prop Lesson Ah Mau, who made his New Zealand debut after previously captaining Samoa, with the ladder leaders to play against Parramatta on Thursday night.
It was unclear whether Ah Mau would even arrive back in Australia in time to take part in the Dragons' captain's run on Wednesday, their final session before the clash with the Eels in Wollongong.
A fast-starting Kiwis were worn down 36-18 by Wayne Bennett's World Cup finalists in the historic Test on Sunday morning (AEST), which won the support of both the super coach and first-time New Zealand mentor Michael Maguire.
