Fanzone

On behalf of the players of the NYC squad I would like to thank all the members for their support of the team. The players were proud of the reception they got after our game at Blue Tongue Stadium on Saturday night. We are currently in the middle of a four game stretch between two byes, which presented the challenge of playing four teams in the top eight. This included trips to Canberra, Gosford and Auckland to finish. We were determined get the first two wins and go to ANZ Stadium to play the Dragons in front of our home crowd holding a spot in the eight. We have done this and now hope to see all the members at ANZ for an 11.45am kick off on Sunday.

The game against Canberra was a challenge for us that we took on and handled very well. Apart from the fact the raiders were on top of the table at the time, we faced the task of going down and back in a day. As the NYC boys all work the first task was getting the day off work for an 11am bus ride. With a packed lunch and some warm clothing the boys set off remaining focussed on the game.

There were some fine performances on the night highlighted by the debut of Mal Webster, who managed two tries and could of got three if he had of picked up another fine kick from Chris Sandow. Aaron Hammett managed his first try of the year which was long overdue and much deserved. Aaron continues to do plenty of work that goes unnoticed but is greatly appreciated by his team mates. Dave Tyrrell was excellent; he has showed that he is an asset to the team following his switch from the wing to the second row.

With the two competition points packed on the bus, the boys returned home at Redfern on midnight and were crawling into bed at 1am. As per the rules of the competition regarding work and education, a majority of the boys were up from 5am to get to work the next morning, and onto training at 5pm. With only a four day turn around before the Storm game, the boys were going to have to recover and prepare in a short period of time. This was going to make the Storm game that little bit more difficult.

As the game at Gosford got closer it was clear that we were showing signs of tiredness. But to the boys credit they were determined not to use this as an excuse and give it 100% against the Storm. And this they did. The boys showed a professional attitude to the preparation and managed to get the job done.

After a sluggish first half in which we made some costly handling errors, we were fortunate to get to the half time break behind by two, 14-12. At the break we spoke of the need for a better effort and more communication between each other. We were confident that we could come out on top if we could keep our defence in order.

The second half showed a lift in enthusiasm fro the whistle. Pettybourne, Kaifoto and Lupi took the ball forward with power and laid a great platform for the others. Trotter was smart at dummy half and tackled everything that moved. Sandow’s kicking game had the storm guessing his every move. Clark ran with speed and his enthusiasm in defence was infectious to the rest of the boys, he led by example. And once again Webster showed he has an unknown quantity of speed. Capewell has been excellent at fullback and continues to clean up at the back for the team, in addition to laying on the odd try. Having the experience of Paea and Huihahau in the team is also an advantage. 

We are in for a very tough game this weekend against the Dragons, who now sit on top of the ladder. We hope that the members will be there to give us a lift at 11.45am on Sunday.

Thanks

Alan Wilson.

On a day when the weather delivered conditions that required we turn up in a Toyota Hilux, prepared to get dirty and get the tough stuff done, unfortunately we turned up in a Toyota Echo, looking for a quick journey in a bit of comfort.

The Tigers gave us a lesson that the last game's effort is no guarantee to a good performance in the next game. In a game where both teams made errors, we did not make the most of our opportunities, taking the ball over the line four times but failing to ground it for a try.

We lost an opportunity to climb another rung on the ladder and take a handy spot behind the front runners. And if not for the efforts of Luke Capewell we would not have been in a position to get so close to the Tigers, saving three tries with an ‘extra’ effort in defence.

We go to Brisbane with a big challenge but there is not a better place to go and play well at a magnificent stadium. It will be a new experience for many of the boys having to travel by plane for a game, one member of our squad has never been on a plane before.

I hope we can regain some form and bring it back to the Members the following week against the Cowboys.

See you at ANZ Stadium.

Patience and perseverance were rewarded with a good team performance that delivered our first win of the season over Manly.

After a shaky start in which we wasted an opportunity to score first we found ourselves down 10-0 after 30 minutes.

We have spoken about the need to stick to our plan and the boys reminded themselves of that behind the tryline. To their credit they did this and found themselves ahead 12-10 at half-time.

The positive attitude at half-time was taken onto the field for the second half and this transpired into another 24 points and we came away 36-22 winners.

Chris Farrell was outstanding and was voted players’ player for his efforts in a great team role. Luke Capewell’s positioning at fullback was excellent. It is a position he is still learning and one he will continue to get better at.

Sam Huihahau continues to show his strength in carrying the ball, living up to his nickname of ‘Metres’. Junior Seumanutafa carried the ball strongly and Chris Sandow once again showed glimpses of individual brilliance and his goal kicking was superb. John Kaifoto continues to improve; Trent Trotter was everywhere as was Aaron Hammett. Brad Lupi put in a lot of hard work and Eddy Pettybourne was again a great example to his team mates of how to run the ball.

We were very pleased with our effort and have committed to each other to train hard this week with the intention putting together another good display against the Sharks.

March 26

Another good effort was once again not enough to get a win against the Bulldogs. We hit the final hurdle only to see the Bulldogs cross the line just ahead of us.

Many of the Members expressed their disappointment for us after the game, for which we would like to thank them. It gives us all encouragement to know that you are watching us with interest, and giving us that famous ‘Rabbitohs’ support.

We hope that we are providing some good football in return and hope that you get some real enjoyment from watching your NYC team this year.

Although a last chance goal kick for a draw was unsuccessful, it was again some vital errors prior to this that proved costly. As everyone is finding out the 10-man interchange rule is placing more importance on holding the ball, so as not to use all your energy in defence.

We let the dogs get away to a 16-0 lead after only 12 minutes through a lack of respect for possession.  Our own errors provided them ball and field position to test us on our goal line, and we did not handle it.

After scoring to get us back to 16-6 after 18 minutes. We then started to play some good football amongst the continuing errors, completing only seven of 15 sets in the first half, which included handling errors on four sets in a row. Add to this we lost one of our interchange players, Hala Laula, after only two minutes.

At half time, and 16-6 down, we were still positive and believed that with better ball control we were still well and truly in the game.

And so it proved that way, fighting back to take the lead 24-20 up until the 76th minute. We then produced a few of ‘those’ errors which halted our momentum and proved to be our undoing.

We are learning the hard way at the moment, but as long as we do learn we will improve. We have held a lead in our last three games only to see it disappear. I believe that we have been in position to win all those games but we have been guilty of trying to ‘win it again’ by forcing a pass that does not need to be thrown, and coming up with an error. 

BJ Nathan continues to win some fans with very solid performances. Sam Huihahau and Eddy Pettybourne show the benefits of being a full-time player with examples of speed and strength. Dave Tyrrell was a welcome addition and will get better with more games. Chris Sandow showed that he is an exciting player. John Kaifoto and Rob Talai have taken their opportunities and are improving. Aaron Hammett is learning to play a lot of minutes which is so important under the new 10 interchange rule.

As a team we have grown over the last four weeks, and with improvement at training we will continue to do so. We are close to a win and need to be confident it will come. We just need to knock the first domino over…….  

Wilson Blog round 1

Whilst the squad had the weekend off, four of them would have needed much of Saturday to recover! On Friday they attended the NRL training session, which they later described as the toughest of their lives.

It was a very hard skills and conditioning session, where Hala Laula, Joe Matapuku, John Kaifoto and Aaron Hammett were all pushed to their limits but survived and earned the respect of many for their efforts.

Apart from the physical discomfort, they learnt what level of intensity is expected at training if they want to take the next step in their careers. They also got a great feel for the camaraderie and commitment to each other that is present in the NRL squad. And this is what made them leave with a smile on their face.

With game one only days away, we welcomed a couple of ‘new boys’ to training this week. Eddy Pettybourne and Sam Huihahau made their NYC training debut on Monday and all of the squad was excited to have them. Add to this that Hala and Trent Trotter are returning for their first game having missed the trials, we have an added shot of confidence for this week.

We hope all the members can get to ANZ Stadium for our 5.20pm kick off on Friday for the first game of the Centenary Season of Rugby League. We will take on possibly the biggest packs in the competition and would love to hear your support.  

I regularly test the boys on their knowledge of TV culture and this week the trivia question that went unanswered was “what profession and what show was B.J. Hoyneycutt in?”