An honesty session with the players after their awful 62-6 defeat to Penrith three weeks ago has played some part in the Warriors' turnaround.
It certainly has for one player who wasn't even involved in that match.
Fullback Kevin Locke was in dynamic form in the 56-18 win over Brisbane on Monday night, setting up three tries, making three tackle breaks and running for 152m. He injected himself into the line with pace and was elusive on attack and safe at the back.
He wasn't alone in impressing against a Broncos side shorn of four players through State of Origin, but it was a vast improvement on the sort of form that drew criticism earlier this season. He was seen as a skilful player who wasn't influencing games enough.
Theories are that the probable arrival of England fullback Sam Tomkins sparked his turnaround, but Locke says he's not concerned by the threat and the recent honesty session called after the Penrith result made more of an impression.
"When we sat down and spoke about what strengths we had to offer the team, I told them what I could bring and I had to back it up," said Locke, who missed the Panthers game with a back injury. "I have been working hard and trying to bring my little tricks back and it seems to have worked the last couple of weeks.
It's hard to imagine Tomkins, who was last year's UK Super League player of the year and has scored 22 tries in 17 league games for Wigan this season, playing anywhere other than fullback if he's lured to Mt Smart. Warriors coach Matt Elliott has assured Locke he will still have a role at the club if Tomkins is signed and Locke is open to a positional shift.
"I wouldn't mind pushing the halves alongside Shaun [Johnson]," Locke said. "I even said hooker. I used to play halves before I came here. It was [former under-20s coach] Tony Iro who put me in the fullback role ... and I've been there ever since."
The makeup of the halves and hooker for next season is in flux.
Hooker Nathan Friend is off contract at the end of the season but the club looks increasingly unlikely to offer him a new deal - he tweeted last night he "may be looking for a new home in 2014" - raising the possibility five-eighth Thomas Leuluai will shift to rake. The club are also on the verge of signing 22-year-old Cronulla half Chad Townsend.
The Warriors' immediate future is tomorrow's game against a Manly side refreshed after a 14-day break. They have shown promising signs in the past fortnight but recognise they are still 14th on the ladder - and only four points outside the top eight.
Wing Manu Vatuvei is another who has shown impressive form lately. Last week he scored two tries, made eight tackle breaks and ran for a game-high 175m and it came on the back of an equally impressive performance in the crucial win over Newcastle the previous week.
There was some disquiet among fans when the 27-year-old recently signed a new three-year deal but he has proved his value lately and is on a run of eight tries in the last six games.
Vatuvei puts it down to the fact that he's older and wiser and he can now be found doing extra fitness and ball work. His body still creaks and groans, and he sat out training on Thursday with a sore knee, but he will probably never play completely injury-free.
Source : http://www.nzherald.co.nz
No comments:
Post a Comment