AUCKLAND, April 26 NZN - Former Kiwis coach Graham Lowe says the Warriors' 42-0 thumping by Melbourne reinforces his assertion of an attitude problem in the NRL club.
However he doubts the solution is as simple as sacking coach Andrew McFadden, who is under increasing pressure as the Warriors (3-5) languish in 13th place after finishing 2015 with an eight-game losing streak.
Lowe highlighted the Warriors' limp defensive effort against the Storm, who ran in eight tries.
A one-time part-owner of the Auckland-based club, he didn't resile from his controversial comment in March when he blamed a "bro culture" for their predicament.
"By that I mean, don't worry, be happy," Lowe said on Tuesday.
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"When they are hard on defence on their goal line, alarm bells should be going everywhere.
"There should be a lift in intensity that you should notice, but you didn't notice any lift at all."
Lowe said it was a real concern if players did not carry out instructions.
"I think there is a poor attitude within the place," he said.
"Put last night's game to one side; they haven't been playing well in any case.
"They haven't really played consistently well for a year, so that's not a flash in pan."
Asked if a change of coach was the answer, Lowe said: "It's probably not as straightforward as that.
"They have to look at the whole picture."
Owner Eric Watson last week again backed McFadden after the Warriors beat Canterbury in Wellington.
"We've got a great management team and we've got a coach and coaching team that all the players respect and are playing for," he said.
Watson urged patience, saying there was no point in chopping and changing.
"We've had to do that from time to time because we just haven't been happy with what we've had," he said.
"But we're pretty happy right now with what we've got."
