Stats will never tell the whole story when it comes to James Fisher-Harris.
The inspriational forward pack leader's swap from the Penrith Panthers to the New Zealand Warriors during the most recently completed off-season, and the plight of the two teams since, does though.
Both teams have simply been built different in 2025 - the Warriors for the better, and the Panthers, not so much.
The Panthers have more than just a solitary issue which has caused their dramatic fall down the table from four-time defending premiers to where they currently sit, stone motherless and with their finals chances growing slimmer and slimmer by the week.
It has been one of the all-time fadeouts, but also created by a perfect storm which they have finally been unable to overcome.
An extra season of games over the last four years thanks to finals, trips around the world, to England for the World Club Challenge, and to Las Vegas for the season opener this year, not having access to their usual fortress of a home ground at the foot of the mountains as it undergoes rennovations, and lastly, the departures of key talent, finished off with Fisher-Harris and five-eighth Jarome Luai this year.
But it's Fisher-Harris who has simply proven unreplaceable.
A team is only as good as it's leader in the middle third. Other components have to be there for a team to be the complete package, but there is no surprise the Broncos are competitive when Payne Haas is at his best, and the Raiders fly when Joseph Tapine takes things into his own hands for the Raiders.
Addin Fonua-Blake is the other player in the elite group of props. 2023 saw him help the Warriors to a preliminary final, and when his performance dipped in 2024 at the Warriors, they struggled, particularly with Shaun Johnson at the end of his career, and other injuries and distractions hampering the club throughout a difficult campaign.
That's why the Panthers losing Fisher-Harris was always going to be close to unreplaceable at the foot of the mountains.
Moses Leota has been unable to move into Fisher-Harris' role, and while Lindsay Smith is a Kangaroos representative, he hasn't been able to take the next step either. The other players, led by Liam Henry, simply aren't ready for the increased responsibility at this stage of their careers.
There is no doubt Smith and Henry will become elite props, but they simply don't have the experience to be part of the replacement plan for one of the best forwards in the game at this stage of their careers.
Compare that to the other side of the Tasman, and Fisher-Harris' arrival has seen the Warriors shoot up the table to be a top four side.
He isn't acting alone, and his numbers on the field - once combined with a handful of weeks out injured - aren't all that great.
But it's the influence he brings. He hits hard in defence, creates a prescence in the middle of the field, and makes defenders work hard to tackle him with tremendous leg drive and an ability to offload the footy.
There is absolutely no surprise that Fisher-Harris' arrival in Auckland has gone hand in hand with the improvement of other players around him, particularly in the middle third.
You only need to look at the way Erin Clark has ripped in at lock to know the influence a forward pack leader and mentor can have.
The former Titan has been playing so well that the Warriors - and rightly so - decided they had no issue with releasing Dylan Walker from his contract to join the Parramatta Eels.
Marata Niukore is playing superbly, Jackson Ford has gone up a few levels, and the youngsters, led by Leka Halasima, are all finding their feet in first-grade far quicker than anyone might have thought possible.
The way the forward pack is operating has also opened up a new style of play, with Luke Metcalf thriving in the number seven jumper, and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad going through the gears at fullback.
It's not all Fisher-Harris, but so much of it is driven by the former Panther, Kiwis captain and four-time premiership-winner.
The standards set, the drive to win, and the knowledge of how to do it, combined with the way Andrew Webster has his team humming, have turned the Warriors into an unlikely premiership chance in one of the most open NRL seasons to date.
If Fisher-Harris can stay fit from here on out, and be at his best during the finals, the Warriors are a real shot at taking the glory in 2025.
