PHOTOS:
NRLPhotos.com:
Gregg
Porteous
(Maumalo,
Wright,
Brailey),
Nathan
Hopkins (Mbye), Shane Myers (Gutherson),
Grant Trouville (Maloney), Scott Davis (Oates), Asanka Ratnayake (Munster)26 BIG LEAGUE 2019 Round 20PLAYMAKERJamesMaloneysaid
it’simportantforPenrithtokeep
buildingotherwisethey’lljustbe
makingupnumbersinthefinals–
ormisstheplay-offsaltogether.
ThePanthershaverisento
seventhontheladderafter
winningsevenoftheirpast
eightgames,butMaloneysaid
it meansnothingif theydon’t
continuetoimprove.
“Whilewe’reinthetopeight,we
needtokeepbuildingif wewantto
playfinalsfootball,”Maloneysaid.
“Ifyou’renotplayingwellat
theendoftheseason,you’lljust
bemakingupnumbers.Youmay
aswellnotbethere.
“Thekeyistokeepbuilding
tomakesurethatinsixor
sevenweekswe’replaying
our best footy.” – MICHAEL BLOKEDGINGpasttheStorminextra
timeatAAMIParkwasa great
dressrehearsalforfinals
football,accordingtoManly
captainDalyCherry-Evans.
TheSeaEaglesaffirmedtheir
statusasgenuinetitlecontenders
lastweek,asCherry-Evans’
last-ditchfieldgoalsecured
a massivevictoryoverpremiership
favouritesMelbourne.Thematch-
winnerlikenedthegametoa finals
contest,andsaidit wasa great
experienceforhisside,although
theyhavenotofficiallybooked
theirspotinthefinals.
“Itwasdefinitelya feeloffinals
footballtothatgame,”hesaid.
“Youcanlookatit as
a preparationtoplayfinals,butwe
haven’tbookedourspotyetsowe
have to keep our heads down.”– JCPOWERFULwingerKen
Maumalohassenta scary
warningtotherestofthe
competition,declaringhe’sstill
lookingtoimprovepartsofhis
gameinwhathaseasilybeen
hisbestseasonintheNRL.
Oncedubbedthe‘MiniBeast’
astheWarriorslookedtoreplace
clubgreatManuVatuvei,it took
a whileforMaumalotofindhis
feetintheNRL,withtheoutside
backmanagingjust 14 triesin
hisfirstfourseasons.
However,he’sfounda new
leaseonfootyin 2019 andhas
alreadymatchedhiscareertally
injust 17 matches,including
a doubleagainsttheEels
lastweek.Fittingly,heand
ParramattastarMaikaSivoare
joint-leadersinthetrystakes.
Whilehe’sbeenscoringfor
fun,Maumalohasalsouppedhis
work-rateandleadstheleague
inpost-contactmetres(1,088),is
secondinoverallrunningmetres
(3,331)andonlytrailsJames
Tedescoinline-breaks(12).
“Nothinghaschangedforme- I’mjustgettingmoreinvolved
andrunningit more,”hetold
BigLeague.
“IknowthatI’vegota lot
moretoimproveinmygame
andI’mnotcontentwithhowI’m
goingatthemoment.I feellike
if I dogetcomplacentthenI’m
introuble.Therearealwaysways
togetbetter,andthat’swhatI’m
trying to do.” – MARTIN GABOR
HISTORYsuggeststheywon’tplayfinalsfooty
in2019,buttrytellingthattothecurrentcrop
ofWestsTigersplayers.
Theclubhasfailedtoreachthepost-season
since 2011 butthatcouldchangewithMichael
Maguire’ssidejustonepointbehindtheeighth-
placedBroncoswithsixroundsremaining.
They’vebeeninsimilarpositionsinrecent
years,onlytofalteratthefinalhurdle.
“Ithinkwe’rebetterforit comparedtolast
year,”skipperMosesMbyesaid.
“Iknowit’seasytosaythatandtellthefans
whatwe’regoingtodo,butuntilweshowthat
wecanplaySeptemberfooty,there’snopoint
reallysayingmuch.
“Wejustneedtoletouractionsdothetalking.”
TheTigershavetheperfectopportunityto
buildonlastweek’scrucialwinintheHunterwhen
theytakeontheCowboysatLeichhardtOval.
“Weknowwehavetowin,”Mbyesaid.
“Ifwekeepwinninggamesthenweput
ourselvesinthebestpossiblepositiontoplay
finalsfootballandthat’swhatwe’rehereto
do.It’sjustaboutwinninggamesandkeeping
momentum.It’sa biggameatLeichhardtand
a big occasion so we need to perform.” – MG