mozgrame
Engorged member
WHEN Nate Myles signed with Manly in May this year, it looked like he would be joining one of the weakest forward packs in the competition.
At the time, the once feared Sea Eagles were languishing towards the bottom of the ladder and it was their no name pack copping the blame.
Fast forward six months and the landscape has completely changed.
The Sea Eagles’ late season charge to ninth position unearthed 21-year-old Jake Trbojevic as one of the competition’s rising stars.
Off the field Manly legend Bob Fulton was busy with his blueprint for the future of the club, involving a ruthless cull of the perceived dead weight on the roster and a remarkable recruitment drive luring New Zealand Test players Marty Taupau and Lewis Brown as well as Darcy Lussick, premiership hooker Apisai Koroisau and young gun Matt Parcell.
All of a sudden Manly’s forward pack looks to be transforming from an NRL weakling to a powerhouse the envy of the competition, leaving the “fortunate” Myles to contemplate whether even he is a guaranteed starter.
“I don’t think I will be walking into it. I think they’ve put together such a strong roster it really means competition’s going to be strong,” Myles told foxsports.com.au.
“In all honesty I think I’ve been really fortunate in my decision. I think the way that this team’s come together in the last few weeks and months I’ve really just got lucky — it’s almost like hitting the jackpot.
“ ... The roster’s gotten so much stronger since I made my decision and I’m very thankful for that, that’s what the club’s done, they’ve obviously been busy so when pre-season’s getting amongst it, I suppose we can look forward to round one but at the moment we’ve only got to make sure we get the most out of pre-season and all of us forwards should really be pushing each other.”
After admitting he’d need a big pre-season to ensure his place in the starting side, Myles revealed he was expecting to take on the responsibility as Manly’s forwards leader, particularly after veteran Willie Mason was cut from the squad.
The Queensland star just recently turned 30, although he joked that “everyone thinks I’m a lot older” and is likely to have several years experience on the second oldest head he packs down with.
However, despite his years of experience as captain of former club the Gold Coast Titans, Myles said he would be respectful of Manly’s leaders rather than trying to impose his own style.
“The other senior guys in the club are backs and I think there is — I have to be respectful of how they have set up their leadership here for sure, and probably over the next few weeks of pre-season I’ll be learning about it — but as a forward I’ll be looking to lead, and not so much lead but getting to know the other forwards and work alongside them,” Myles said.
“Just with Jake (Trbojevic) as an example, you can sort of see what they’re doing and pick up on something you can help them with and by sharing that experience we can all learn from it.
“Look I probably am the oldest forward here but in saying that, that’s exciting because there’s some talent there.”
Myles now sees the Sea Eagles as a club he can win a premiership with, but he revealed that when he joined the club it was the history and culture of the place that most attracted him.
“The aspect of Manly that was so good for me, was firstly that it’s so rich in history,” Myles said.
“It’s a team I’ve always felt ‘wow, we’re playing against Manly, it’s going to be hard’, so that was something that attracted me.
“The other thing was my family position, my wife (actor Tessa James) and I wanted to get back to Sydney and it’s going to help out with her work and things like that.
“It all pointed towards Manly and I’m very lucky I made that decision, I’m very comfortable with it.”
http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...d-about-decision/story-e6frf3ru-1227596179633
At the time, the once feared Sea Eagles were languishing towards the bottom of the ladder and it was their no name pack copping the blame.
Fast forward six months and the landscape has completely changed.
The Sea Eagles’ late season charge to ninth position unearthed 21-year-old Jake Trbojevic as one of the competition’s rising stars.
Off the field Manly legend Bob Fulton was busy with his blueprint for the future of the club, involving a ruthless cull of the perceived dead weight on the roster and a remarkable recruitment drive luring New Zealand Test players Marty Taupau and Lewis Brown as well as Darcy Lussick, premiership hooker Apisai Koroisau and young gun Matt Parcell.
All of a sudden Manly’s forward pack looks to be transforming from an NRL weakling to a powerhouse the envy of the competition, leaving the “fortunate” Myles to contemplate whether even he is a guaranteed starter.
“I don’t think I will be walking into it. I think they’ve put together such a strong roster it really means competition’s going to be strong,” Myles told foxsports.com.au.
“In all honesty I think I’ve been really fortunate in my decision. I think the way that this team’s come together in the last few weeks and months I’ve really just got lucky — it’s almost like hitting the jackpot.
“ ... The roster’s gotten so much stronger since I made my decision and I’m very thankful for that, that’s what the club’s done, they’ve obviously been busy so when pre-season’s getting amongst it, I suppose we can look forward to round one but at the moment we’ve only got to make sure we get the most out of pre-season and all of us forwards should really be pushing each other.”
After admitting he’d need a big pre-season to ensure his place in the starting side, Myles revealed he was expecting to take on the responsibility as Manly’s forwards leader, particularly after veteran Willie Mason was cut from the squad.
The Queensland star just recently turned 30, although he joked that “everyone thinks I’m a lot older” and is likely to have several years experience on the second oldest head he packs down with.
However, despite his years of experience as captain of former club the Gold Coast Titans, Myles said he would be respectful of Manly’s leaders rather than trying to impose his own style.
“The other senior guys in the club are backs and I think there is — I have to be respectful of how they have set up their leadership here for sure, and probably over the next few weeks of pre-season I’ll be learning about it — but as a forward I’ll be looking to lead, and not so much lead but getting to know the other forwards and work alongside them,” Myles said.
“Just with Jake (Trbojevic) as an example, you can sort of see what they’re doing and pick up on something you can help them with and by sharing that experience we can all learn from it.
“Look I probably am the oldest forward here but in saying that, that’s exciting because there’s some talent there.”
Myles now sees the Sea Eagles as a club he can win a premiership with, but he revealed that when he joined the club it was the history and culture of the place that most attracted him.
“The aspect of Manly that was so good for me, was firstly that it’s so rich in history,” Myles said.
“It’s a team I’ve always felt ‘wow, we’re playing against Manly, it’s going to be hard’, so that was something that attracted me.
“The other thing was my family position, my wife (actor Tessa James) and I wanted to get back to Sydney and it’s going to help out with her work and things like that.
“It all pointed towards Manly and I’m very lucky I made that decision, I’m very comfortable with it.”
http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...d-about-decision/story-e6frf3ru-1227596179633
