Emotions were running high but both the Warriors and Parramatta believe the celebrations and sadness on show at Mt Smart Stadium did not help the Kiwis to a 26-18 first round win on Saturday.

The season opener marked two important occasions for the Warriors - skipper Steve Price's 300th premiership game and the sombre remembrance for teammate Sonny Fai who drowned at an Auckland beach in January.

A standing ovation for Price followed by a tearful minute's silence for Fai kick-started the Warriors side which began strong and then slowed but managed to hold on when the Eels came to form in the second half.

Eels skipper Nathan Cayless said he was aware his team could be ambushed by the high emotions among their opposition, he didn't think that accounted for the loss.

"We were aware of (the risk of emotional ambush), we spoke about that, (but I think) it was our discipline that let us down and gave them opportunity to put points on us early," Cayless said.

Price agreed the emotional mood didn't contribute to the win, saying it was good training and solid conditioning that got his side over the line.

"I don't think it made too much of a difference for the boys," said Price who, at 35, is the oldest player in the NRL and reputedly the most popular Australian in New Zealand.

He described his triple century, giving him membership to an elite group of 11 players in NRL history, as the "icing on the cake" of the win.

"It's pretty special alright," he said.

"It's been a massive week for me."

In the match post mortem, Eels coach Daniel Anderson commended the efforts of his team, saying they played well for 70 of the 80 minutes but were weak early on.

"It was frustrating and a little disappointing that some of the tries that the Warriors scored were pretty soft by our standards," said the former Warriors coach.

He singled out five-eight Jarryd Hayne for praise, saying he didn't make a poor decision or a poor tackle throughout.

Parramatta face the South Sydney Rabbitohs at ANZ Stadium in round two on March 20, while the Warriors play last year's winner Manly on March 22.

"It's a massive week this week, coming up against last year's premiers," said Price.

Manly ended the Warriors' title hopes last September with a convincing 32-6 win in their preliminary final and then went on to beat Melbourne for the title.

They're off to a troubled start this season however, with star fullback Brett Stewart stood down after being charged with sexual assault and a surprise loss to the lowly-ranked Bulldogs.

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