It was a successful opening day of the 2015 NRL Auckland Nines for Wests Tigers, chalking up victories against Canberra and the Gold Coast.
Read the action from some of the squad below as they look ahead to tomorrow’s match against the New Zealand Warriors.
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Chris Lawrence:
“It was a really good day, very enjoyable and a great atmosphere at the ground. Very good to get two wins on the board.”
“It was a massive honour to lead the boys out today, it always is when you get to captain your Club. It was great to get the win in the game too. It really set us up for a good day.”
“I’ll be right for tomorrow; it was a planned rest game for me (against the Gold Coast) regardless of what happened in the first game. I obviously would have loved to have been out there in both matches but that’s the way JT (Jason Taylor) wanted it. I’ll be ready to go tomorrow.”
“It’s going to be a really tough hit-out against the Warriors, they need a win to make the finals but the boys are playing well and are confident. We just need to keep doing what we have been practicing.”
Pat Richards:
“It was very enjoyable to get out there today and be in a competitive environment again. It was good to put into practice what we have been working on all off-season. I think all the boys did really well.”
“I think we are getting better as the tournament goes on and hopefully we will continue to do that. It’s a great atmosphere out there and the Warriors need a win tomorrow, the crowd really get behind them, and I think that our boys just can’t wait to come up against them.”
Kevin Naiqama:
“It was really good and I had lots of fun out there. The boys put in a lot of effort and had each other’s backs. It was really good to have my first hit-out for the Club.”
“Getting two from two wins is obviously a good start for us. We couldn’t have asked for anything better. I was a bit banged up and sore after it but I’m getting a massage now and hopefully I’ll be good for tomorrow again.”
“The Warriors are obviously the crowd favourites, being in New Zealand and all, but we just saw that Canberra did a job on them. At the end of the day, we are just looking to go out there and put in our best performance and if we can knock them off tomorrow it would be great.”
Asipeli Fine:
“It was really quick out there, very fast actually. I found it pretty tough, especially being run down by Dave Taylor (laughs). It was good to get over for that try at the end, although that was Drinky’s (Josh Drinkwater’s) try; all him.”
“The atmosphere was the best I have been involved in; you could hardly hear the players out there on the field. Awesome crowd in Auckland.”
Nathan Brown:
“It was good fun out there, the boys played well and that shows with two from two wins.”
“I was actually really nervous in game one even though I wasn’t playing, just watching the boys warm-up. I had a bit of nerves in the second game but once I got my first run it was sweet.”
“It was probably one of the best atmospheres I have played in. The Auckland crowd really got into it, when the Warriors came out on the field the stadium went up.”
Lamar Liolevave:
“I found it pretty interesting today; it was just a really good experience for me playing against the big boys for the first time. I finally got to feel how it is contact-wise and speed-wise. It felt really good though.”
“I was nervous but excited at the same time. The boys pushed deep and we put into practice what we had been working on. That’s all JT (Jason Taylor) asked for. I’m proud of the boys.”
Kyle Lovett:
“The whole experience was unbelievable. The atmosphere is crazy. It has been really good all week since we got here in Auckland. Two from two, we can’t ask for anymore than that. The boys really turned up to play today and that made it really enjoyable.”
“It was a bit different (scoring two tries against Canberra), I hadn’t scored in a while so it was good to get two.”
