Warriors and Kiwis captain Simon Mannering is confident he will be right to start round one of the NRL despite being ruled out of the Nines because of a few "little niggles".

The Warriors are set to temper their all-out attacking mindset and put more of an emphasis on defence at this weekend's NRL Auckland Nines.

Shaun Johnson says he's finally coming to grips with what it means to be a first-grade halfback as he enters his fifth NRL season.

Disgraced former Melbourne chief executive Brian Waldron has broken his silence to explain his part in the Storm's NRL salary cap scandal.

Yes, the mail must go through. But whether it would still be them delivering it after this weekend was a question three South Auckland posties had to think long and hard about after being asked to....

League superstar Johnathan Thurston will be missed, but his absence will not detract from the entertainment at this weekend's NRL Nines, organisers say.

Australian cities could get to bid for the NRL Auckland Nines rugby league tournament when the contract comes up for renewal next year.

Australia is preparing a raid on the lucrative Auckland NRL Nines tournament - but is being warned to keep its hands off.

The Dick Smith NRL Auckland Nines hit town on Friday, and the build-up begins in the city before the action heads over to Eden Park. Last year more than 90,000 fans packed the stadium; 5000 fans made it into the city for the opening party.

Preparations are well under way for the NRL Auckland Nines, which kicks off on January 31, with seven large banners being put up around Auckland ahead of the event.

Benji Marshall will make his return to Eden Park as captain of the St George Illawarra Dragons at the NRL Auckland Nines this month.

NRL premiers South Sydney suffered a double blow yesterday with forward Luke Burgess heading to Manly for the next two seasons and CEO Shane Richardson leaving the club to take up a position at the NRL.

The NRL Auckland Nines might be the brainchild of Dean Lonergan, but Australian league legend Mal Meninga is the man who convinced him that the concept was a winner.

Street thug Russell Packer has done the time, or half of it thanks to a successful appeal. Yet his crime was so vicious the NRL would be crazy to let him walk straight through the prison gates and into their playing ranks.

There were just two arrests for intoxication over two days at last year's sold-out inaugural Auckland NRL Nines tournament.

The small but perfectly formed NFL season is a classic example of how to turn less into more. Much more. It's a lesson some of our major sports codes would do well to imitate.

Blake Ferguson will be required to attend monthly welfare meetings with the NRL and Roosters officials next season to ensure his career never spirals out of control again.

When a group of young Mt Wellington flatmates advertised for a new addition to their house, they didn't expect an NRL player to come knocking.

Golden Boot winner Shaun Johnson describes winning the prestigious award as a "massive honour" but predicts the best is yet to come in his league career.