Shaun Johnson is confident the Warriors can turn things around after a season to forget last year.

The 32-year-old halfback admits he's not the same player he was when he first came into the NRL, but doesn't see that as a negative as his side prepares for their NRL season opener against Newcastle on Friday night.

"A lot of people want to speak about the aspects of the game that you lose [from getting older]. Coming in, I was the fast, stepping player. Now people say, 'He doesn't have that'.

"Well mate, you don't have the speed you had 10 years ago. Some people never had it to begin with, so at least I'm ahead there," he joked with the media at Mt Smart Stadium.

"But as you get a bit older you get a bit stronger in the head, you learn what suits the team around a bit more. That might frustrate people that they don't see the highlights that they want, but for me I'm continuing to learn and grow in different areas."

It's fair to say the Warriors will need every bit of growth they can muster after a horror 2022 season in which they finished second-last.

After starting with a respectable three wins from their first five games, they could only manage to double that tally to six over the next 20 rounds.

"It's no secret how the season finished last year and how tough that was for everyone," Johnson said.

"So being home and being around family, all the stuff you take for granted when you've never not had it, has certainly been the key factor. But having Webby (coach Andrew Webster) challenging me to reestablish myself back here, they're all reasons why I've had a good pre-season."

One area where the Warriors have bolstered their stocks is in the halves, signing Ronald Volkman last season and adding Te Maire Martin and Luke Metcalf over the summer.

While Metcalf is out for up to eight weeks with a hamstring injury, Johnson says working with the group is "refreshing".

"Te Maire is pretty experienced and I've had the experience of playing with him for the Kiwis, Lukey I was with for a season over with the Sharks. We have a pretty tight-knit group and we're driving each other, competing for spots. It's a really competitive spine and that's what's going to get the best out of me, for sure."

Despite his career path taking Johnson out of the Warriors before a shock re-entry to the club where he debuted as a 20-year-old in 2011, he's fully aware of the expectations of a long-suffering Mt Smart fanbase that fall on his shoulders.

"The last few years have been a bit different, not being here. We've got a real chance to reestablish ourselves, connect with our fans and inspire some of the young Kiwi kids coming," he said.

"A lot of that gets put on my shoulders every year, but it's a pretty privileged position to be in, to be honest."