# #87 | Jamal Fogarty | The NRL Dream, Manly Resurgence & FOZBALL!

An episode of [Backstage with Cooper & Matty Johns](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1729949087), 17 May 2026, 59 min.

Audio: https://p.podderapp.com/2544644999/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/2fb3740d-3436-44af-8cc0-a91900716aa5/d7a60aed-0ec1-4a17-9f87-b248003b7796/efb63673-a5fc-4e40-9e13-b4470056b631/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=676e8df2-b284-47a4-9fbd-b248003b77ad

Jamal Fogarty joins the boys to chat the rise of “Fozball” and Manly’s huge resurgence in 2026. They break down the teams shaping as real finals threats and the pressure around big expectations. Subscribe, Watch, and Follow Catch the full episode on YouTube and stay updated by following us on social media: Linktree: Backstage with Cooper & Matty Contact Us For any enquiries, email us at: contact@johnsmedia.com.au 0:00-Quick Wine to Start 2:30-Youth Work 11:00-QLD Cup 14:30-NRL Dream 23:00-Canberra Vs. Gold Coast 27:00-Ricky Stuart 31:00-Canberra Crew 36:00-Signing with Manly 39:00-Last Final & Broncos 46:30-Coach Keiran Foran 52:00-Coaching 55:00-Lone Survivor See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: It's all that despicable stuff that you said off here.
[0:03] Speaker 1: Good to see your sister at the show.
[0:05] Speaker 2: Yeah, jamar, thank you for getting her in the nephew,
[0:08] Speaker 2: and they really appreciate it and got your little gift.
[0:12] Speaker 2: I was talking to Cooper and he said, you love
[0:14] Speaker 2: a cheap bottle of eight dollar of passion pop made.
[0:17] Speaker 1: I love it, but as long as it comes in
[0:19] Speaker 1: a flask.
[0:20] Speaker 2: Yeah, but your little bottle of red to say, thanks, mate,
[0:23] Speaker 2: appreciated you help me.
[0:24] Speaker 3: I'll help you.
[0:26] Speaker 1: You sketch my back, I'll sketch yours.
[0:27] Speaker 3: Yeah, that's right?
[0:28] Speaker 1: Is so? Dad?
[0:30] Speaker 4: You drink that one? That's like a bottle where you're
[0:32] Speaker 4: used to drinking the bag.
[0:34] Speaker 1: True, this is a good one. Been four oh seven
[0:37] Speaker 1: pen foles the cabinet seven on what you like a blend?
[0:39] Speaker 1: What year is it? That? The year is? I haven't
[0:43] Speaker 1: got my glasses on, you do. That's right there hanging
[0:47] Speaker 1: around your neck like an eighty year old man. It's
[0:50] Speaker 1: good year? Yeah what twenty twenty two?
[0:53] Speaker 5: And do you know what guys whoops, I just have
[0:58] Speaker 5: to have this in my pockets like inspector gadget.
[1:01] Speaker 1: You just always got a glass ready to go, ready
[1:03] Speaker 1: to glass.
[1:03] Speaker 2: Someone sorry, is there a process of Yeah, I was
[1:07] Speaker 2: going to say process the smell.
[1:09] Speaker 3: And what you do?
[1:11] Speaker 1: Jamal's your air.
[1:12] Speaker 5: So some people say you need to do it for
[1:14] Speaker 5: about an hour, but I fine, that's fine. Well usually
[1:19] Speaker 5: you decant it right like you'd have the decanting thing.
[1:23] Speaker 5: But isn't that what you do, like you put it
[1:24] Speaker 5: into that decanting flask and then you leave it there
[1:26] Speaker 5: for about half an hour.
[1:27] Speaker 1: Yeah, that's right. Look at you and you just said
[1:33] Speaker 1: you're going to cut down on your drinking.
[1:36] Speaker 5: I never said that. Mum made that up. And it's
[1:40] Speaker 5: good to see you. You got lost out in the front.
[1:41] Speaker 5: Jamal heats people get lot when we send the address.
[1:44] Speaker 1: It must I don't think we do. We not have
[1:45] Speaker 1: a house number out the front or something.
[1:47] Speaker 3: No, you do.
[1:48] Speaker 2: But the house on this side's number five. And then
[1:52] Speaker 2: I've seen the neighbor's house. They have numbers on the
[1:54] Speaker 2: wall that said two. So I thought I went one
[1:57] Speaker 2: back and then the one after that was tense down then,
[2:00] Speaker 2: but I thought you were stitching me up to say,
[2:02] Speaker 2: let's send him into the neighbors, get him arrested.
[2:07] Speaker 1: That's what I thought, that that would be a good
[2:08] Speaker 1: pray i'll disabled neighbor on a wheelchair.
[2:11] Speaker 5: Because we do have a rule in your every if
[2:12] Speaker 5: you're if you're late, because we said two pm, if
[2:14] Speaker 5: you're late, for every minute after you have to take
[2:16] Speaker 5: an item of clothing.
[2:18] Speaker 1: Okay, so you're about five and you haven't got socks.
[2:22] Speaker 3: On or shoes. I've got jocks on to day.
[2:27] Speaker 1: I'll tell you what.
[2:28] Speaker 6: That nice sky blue top there copper that's looking like
[2:31] Speaker 6: it's going to be a dangerous combination with the wine
[2:33] Speaker 6: today just a little bit.
[2:35] Speaker 1: And origin just around the corner of Jamal's fully starts.
[2:38] Speaker 1: Quite seriously.
[2:39] Speaker 5: Congratulations on your career, man, Thank you. We get into
[2:42] Speaker 5: the nitty gritty congratulations and made how you got on
[2:45] Speaker 5: manly to You've made a big difference here. I know
[2:47] Speaker 5: the boys got off to a slow start, but make
[2:49] Speaker 5: the way you control and everything making a big difference.
[2:52] Speaker 2: Yeah, thank you, appreciate that. Obviously a bit of a
[2:54] Speaker 2: late bloomer, so I think the mindset.
[2:57] Speaker 3: That I have is just to enjoy every part of it.
[2:59] Speaker 2: Obviously, a couple years ever, I was working and I
[3:01] Speaker 2: ever said, you know, if I was able to get
[3:03] Speaker 2: back in there, I'm just going to make the most
[3:05] Speaker 2: of it and really enjoyed, and that's kind of been
[3:07] Speaker 2: my motto since.
[3:07] Speaker 1: It was off.
[3:09] Speaker 2: I used to be a youth work on the Goldie
[3:10] Speaker 2: so before that I used to do a bit of
[3:12] Speaker 2: concrete and it was shit house like in the summer
[3:15] Speaker 2: it was hot as and then in the winter everything's
[3:17] Speaker 2: cold and freezing, not compared to Canberra winter obviously out
[3:21] Speaker 2: for Queensland. But then I have a passion for helping
[3:24] Speaker 2: out the disadvantaged youth and was able to work at
[3:27] Speaker 2: Youth Justice on the gold Coast, so used to be
[3:30] Speaker 2: a youth worker there. Let's say I'd pick you up
[3:32] Speaker 2: at nine point fifteen most mornings and we'll go and
[3:34] Speaker 2: do an intervention around if you're someone that's often stealing cars,
[3:38] Speaker 2: we'll try and talk about showing a bit of empathy
[3:40] Speaker 2: and how it impacts the families, Like if you steal
[3:42] Speaker 2: their car, they can't go to work, they can't get money.
[3:45] Speaker 2: Then all of a sudden they've got to get a rental.
[3:46] Speaker 2: They don't know how long it is till they get
[3:48] Speaker 2: their car back, so it's got a little snowball effect.
[3:51] Speaker 2: And trying to speak that in the kids was part
[3:53] Speaker 2: of it. But I think I learned more off the kids.
[3:55] Speaker 2: I'd about everyday life and struggles and what they probably
[3:58] Speaker 2: learn off myself. Every single day was different. Every child
[4:03] Speaker 2: that you work with was different. And a couple of them, obviously,
[4:06] Speaker 2: when they're in detention, they'd get the Channel nine queens
[4:08] Speaker 2: and Cup games up and they'll be in the desk mine, You're.
[4:10] Speaker 3: A shit, You a shit. I was just like, oh,
[4:13] Speaker 3: here they are out of here, bag me out. What
[4:15] Speaker 3: do you want?
[4:16] Speaker 1: Were you played Queensland Cup at the time we're doing that. Yeah.
[4:18] Speaker 2: So I was concreting in twenty sixteen at the start
[4:22] Speaker 2: of the year, and then when I went back to
[4:26] Speaker 2: the to the Goldie in twenty seventeen, I've just seen
[4:30] Speaker 2: an ad. My wife's mum sent me this thing saying, hey,
[4:33] Speaker 2: would you like to apply for this? And I was like,
[4:35] Speaker 2: government worker, man, I'm the least government person ever. I
[4:38] Speaker 2: don't even know how to write a resume and cover
[4:40] Speaker 2: letter and all this crap. So my mother in law
[4:43] Speaker 2: helped me out and that's how I got into it.
[4:44] Speaker 5: And since you've played NROL obviously and had like a
[4:47] Speaker 5: mad NRL career, have you ever crossed paths with any
[4:50] Speaker 5: of these youth working kids it used to work with.
[4:51] Speaker 2: Now I get a couple messages from them, no, just
[4:54] Speaker 2: saying like, obviously they were grateful for, you know, the
[4:57] Speaker 2: impact that I had with them. And there's one kid
[5:00] Speaker 2: that still messages me. I think you might have sent
[5:02] Speaker 2: one maybe a month ago, and I'd always send one
[5:04] Speaker 2: back to say, you know, I hope your dad's going well,
[5:06] Speaker 2: because I had a good relationship with him and his
[5:09] Speaker 2: old man. So that's actually like a pintry moment to'd
[5:11] Speaker 2: be like, oh, I've done something right in that kid's
[5:14] Speaker 2: life for him to reach out like that.
[5:16] Speaker 5: So obviously we didn't mention names or anything, but I
[5:20] Speaker 5: could you give us a bit of an insight in
[5:21] Speaker 5: just some of the difficult circumstances some people are born into.
[5:25] Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I think some of them mum and dad
[5:28] Speaker 2: in jail or heavily addicted to drugs and that genuinely homeless.
[5:32] Speaker 3: Like a couple of kids that I used to pick up.
[5:35] Speaker 2: It'll be in an abandoned house and I don't know
[5:37] Speaker 2: how many people are in there, and I'd kind of
[5:39] Speaker 2: be out in the front and be like, oh, some
[5:42] Speaker 2: stranger just walking out of the half shipping yourself and
[5:45] Speaker 2: then it'll be like, oh, someone somewhere there, Yep, you'll
[5:47] Speaker 2: come out in a minute, all right.
[5:49] Speaker 5: Really like abandoned house is in like no electricity border.
[5:53] Speaker 2: Up, yeah, real powerless, and some of them would get
[5:57] Speaker 2: burnt down, so like obviously you'd see a fone, Oh
[6:00] Speaker 2: I've been a house and you like, oh, first thing
[6:01] Speaker 2: I think of.
[6:02] Speaker 3: Hopefully none of the kids I work.
[6:03] Speaker 2: With are a part of that type stuff, and probably
[6:06] Speaker 2: the one that really it was pretty upsetting, Like I
[6:09] Speaker 2: used to work with this kid and he said, oh,
[6:11] Speaker 2: I was like, he's homeless on the Goldie, which is like,
[6:14] Speaker 2: how are you homeless on the gold coast? Right? And
[6:17] Speaker 2: his bed was literally a sheet behind a tort block
[6:22] Speaker 2: on the little footpath on the on the cement. Because
[6:24] Speaker 2: I was like, oh, where are you're staying? And he
[6:26] Speaker 2: took me and it was literally a sheet on the
[6:28] Speaker 2: little gravel type cement out at the back of the block.
[6:32] Speaker 2: And then when I went home, like I didn't want
[6:34] Speaker 2: to eat dinner, Like I was actually like hate in
[6:36] Speaker 2: life because like, how can I be happy at home?
[6:38] Speaker 2: I've got eat dinner at the family table with my
[6:41] Speaker 2: family all love to get to sleep in a king
[6:43] Speaker 2: sized bed and I've got like a fourteen year old
[6:45] Speaker 2: kid with no parents sleeping.
[6:48] Speaker 5: It's weird, right because we're in Australia, like we probably
[6:50] Speaker 5: don't see a lot of it, as in how much
[6:53] Speaker 5: you go overseas and you'll see homeless everywhere. But when
[6:56] Speaker 5: you hear a stories like people on the Gold Coast,
[6:58] Speaker 5: like which is such a beautiful spot to live, but
[7:00] Speaker 5: you wouldn't associate that with people being homeless, like just
[7:03] Speaker 5: sleeping in a bush or in the samana. Do you
[7:05] Speaker 5: see a lot of people sleeping rough in the city,
[7:08] Speaker 5: There's a lot. There's a lot there, and certainly areas
[7:10] Speaker 5: around Sydney very ver difficult.
[7:13] Speaker 1: And I mean this is we don't even think about.
[7:18] Speaker 5: This, but you know people who are living rough on
[7:21] Speaker 5: the street and they're sitting there and they might have
[7:23] Speaker 5: their you either got a hat there or something, and
[7:26] Speaker 5: you know they're after the generosity of other people. We're
[7:30] Speaker 5: living in a cashless society almost, you know what I mean.
[7:33] Speaker 5: You think about how that impacts you know, people who
[7:35] Speaker 5: are homeless, who would just relying on the generosity of people.
[7:38] Speaker 5: I see someone as you go past and you just
[7:41] Speaker 5: go you say, I'm so sorry, mate, I've got no cash. Yeah,
[7:44] Speaker 5: no cash on me.
[7:46] Speaker 2: Even if you're like My first thing is I try
[7:48] Speaker 2: to offer them food, but I don't know what food
[7:51] Speaker 2: allergies in that they have, right, So if I was
[7:53] Speaker 2: to give you some type of food you're allergic to it,
[7:56] Speaker 2: then do I get pinned if something was to happen
[7:59] Speaker 2: to that person. I mean, like, it's a nice gesture,
[8:01] Speaker 2: But that's the probably realization that you got to have.
[8:04] Speaker 2: Because there was one time when I was still living
[8:07] Speaker 2: on the Gold every couple of months I clean out
[8:09] Speaker 2: my closet to say I don't wear this.
[8:10] Speaker 3: I'm just going to drop the Vinies.
[8:12] Speaker 2: And just in Tweed, I went down to Vinnie's and
[8:15] Speaker 2: they had the bins on the side of Sunday. Irby
[8:17] Speaker 2: was clothes and walked down the bin down towards the
[8:19] Speaker 2: bins and there was a guy sleeping in front of it,
[8:22] Speaker 2: and he walked past them, threw my bags in.
[8:24] Speaker 3: He didn't wake up and nothing said.
[8:25] Speaker 2: I was like, oh, we got some leftover tie in
[8:28] Speaker 2: the fridge at home, so I put.
[8:30] Speaker 3: It all in the plastic bag.
[8:30] Speaker 2: A little water bottom plane dropped the back down there and.
[8:34] Speaker 3: He's like, oh, thanks brother, thanks so much.
[8:36] Speaker 2: Come and come and give me a kuddle, but it
[8:38] Speaker 2: wasn't like a friendly cuddle, kind of come across a
[8:40] Speaker 2: bit aggressive, and I was just like, oh, I don't
[8:43] Speaker 2: want to get too clear.
[8:43] Speaker 1: Someone was wrestling.
[8:45] Speaker 2: You're right, mate, You just you enjoy your feed because
[8:47] Speaker 2: I think that's if you give them money you genuinely
[8:50] Speaker 2: don't know. Well you kind of do know where they're
[8:52] Speaker 2: going to spend it, but they're not going to feed
[8:54] Speaker 2: themselves with the right fuel and stuff.
[8:56] Speaker 1: And it would also be a weird question.
[8:57] Speaker 5: Imagine like if you had asked, you know, what's your
[8:59] Speaker 5: dietary requirements or allergies? Like five years ago, I had
[9:05] Speaker 5: a like a conversation with bloke who was homeless on
[9:11] Speaker 5: the street and he's sitting there and we have them.
[9:12] Speaker 5: He goes, oh, Maddie, here you going mate? How those
[9:15] Speaker 5: knights of struggling And I used to live on a
[9:17] Speaker 5: newcastle while oh made anyway, We're chatting away for a
[9:19] Speaker 5: while and I said, you know, ask you about his
[9:23] Speaker 5: circumstances and I said, majorty, just duck down getting some
[9:27] Speaker 5: deep He said, I really said, we're going to go
[9:30] Speaker 5: and buy me some grog, would you?
[9:32] Speaker 1: And I said, well, at least you're honest. That's what
[9:34] Speaker 1: he is. And I said, and I said yeah.
[9:37] Speaker 5: I said, look mate, I'm probably not comfortable to going
[9:40] Speaker 5: and buying it for you, but I'll get a bit
[9:42] Speaker 5: of money. I'll give you some money and you can't
[9:43] Speaker 5: give it your own. He said, yeah, he said, you
[9:45] Speaker 5: know people turn send up their nase when they say
[9:48] Speaker 5: He said, but Maddie, let me ask you a question.
[9:51] Speaker 5: If you're fucking laying on the streets, you know what
[9:54] Speaker 5: I mean, would you want to have a drink a
[9:57] Speaker 5: day to try to bury that? And I said, all,
[10:00] Speaker 5: and you go. You know what, although it's not helping
[10:03] Speaker 5: the problem, I understand it, you know what I mean,
[10:06] Speaker 5: I totally understand the situation. I mean, what a predicament
[10:09] Speaker 5: to be in.
[10:09] Speaker 2: The one thing that I never understood living in Canberra
[10:12] Speaker 2: there was homeless people sleeping on the streets and mane
[10:15] Speaker 2: it is freezing cold.
[10:16] Speaker 3: Yeah, Like I've got no address.
[10:18] Speaker 2: So if I jump on a train and go up
[10:21] Speaker 2: to North Queens and I can't get a ticket, I
[10:23] Speaker 2: got no idea ID So like I'm trying to go
[10:26] Speaker 2: on somewhere it's cans where it's warm, You're not freezing cold.
[10:29] Speaker 2: In Canberra trying to rug up and survive because it's
[10:31] Speaker 2: hard enough living in house down there leadlone outside. So
[10:33] Speaker 2: if I was homeless, I'm North Queens.
[10:36] Speaker 5: Yeah, it's a great question boys for and you jump
[10:38] Speaker 5: in on this as well. If you were homeless, where
[10:40] Speaker 5: would you want to live? Well, that's the reason why
[10:42] Speaker 5: San Francisco has such a big homeless problem is that
[10:46] Speaker 5: people from different states go there because it has it
[10:48] Speaker 5: has mild of summers. Well it has warm summers obviously,
[10:52] Speaker 5: but milder winters. San Francisco is every time we go
[10:57] Speaker 5: about to San Francisco, I mean it gets heavier and heavier.
[10:59] Speaker 1: I reckon the Sunshine Coast. I like the Sunshine Coast,
[11:03] Speaker 1: you know what I mean.
[11:04] Speaker 3: Good spy get away with a hoodie get away.
[11:06] Speaker 1: Yeah, even in winter it's hot up there.
[11:09] Speaker 5: Yeah, you don't need it, as I'm sure you've had
[11:11] Speaker 5: plenty of Well, it brings me to my next point
[11:13] Speaker 5: because we've had plenty of adventures together prior to us
[11:16] Speaker 5: not meeting too much personally, but we have played each
[11:20] Speaker 5: other a lot.
[11:20] Speaker 1: In the Queensland Cup, we can sue the respects straight away.
[11:23] Speaker 1: It was very much it was very much an old
[11:25] Speaker 1: bull versus young bull type situation. Twenty nineteen Queensland Cup season.
[11:31] Speaker 1: We verst the other a couple of times.
[11:32] Speaker 5: One of those times was in the preliminary final to
[11:34] Speaker 5: get into the Grand Final where Jamal Fogger he had
[11:36] Speaker 5: one of the greatest kicking games of all times.
[11:38] Speaker 1: I think you kicked four forty twenties in the first half.
[11:40] Speaker 2: Yeah, I think to be fair, that's probably my favorite
[11:44] Speaker 2: game in Queensland Cup that we've ever played, because.
[11:47] Speaker 1: I think favorite memory of my rugby league career.
[11:51] Speaker 2: Not too bad actually, because if you look at the
[11:53] Speaker 2: team that these guys had, they've all gone on to
[11:56] Speaker 2: pretty much play NRAL.
[11:57] Speaker 1: With most of them have gone on Origin.
[12:01] Speaker 2: So throughout the season they were touching everyone up by
[12:04] Speaker 2: sixty points and maybe leaking about twelve points per game.
[12:08] Speaker 2: So we actually had a game plan. We played them
[12:10] Speaker 2: up with a sunny coast and our coach goes, we're
[12:12] Speaker 2: going to play completely different. They've got really good line speeds,
[12:14] Speaker 2: so we're just going to play five meters behind the
[12:16] Speaker 2: ruck and any opportunity that we can get if you'd
[12:19] Speaker 2: think you can kick it in behind because they can't
[12:21] Speaker 2: get up and get behind. So played a mid season
[12:24] Speaker 2: and just had a feel for and then when the
[12:26] Speaker 2: prelim came, a coach is like, this is how we're
[12:28] Speaker 2: going to beat them.
[12:29] Speaker 3: You're going to kick early.
[12:31] Speaker 2: I think we had about eight repeat sets and just
[12:35] Speaker 2: juiced them. So it was actually, yeah, probably one of
[12:37] Speaker 2: the highlights of my Pinsion Cup career because who just
[12:40] Speaker 2: had let's go for the We had Anthony Donn and
[12:43] Speaker 2: that was it.
[12:46] Speaker 1: Don was sledging me.
[12:47] Speaker 5: I said, don You're like the nicest guy in rugby
[12:49] Speaker 5: league and he just kept sledging me all day. You
[12:52] Speaker 5: got a relaxed don one of my favorite players going up.
[12:55] Speaker 5: We had Tino, Nico Hines, myself justin Oldham I think
[13:01] Speaker 5: was in there. Harry Grant obviously, Louis yeah, Chris Lewis.
[13:07] Speaker 1: I think Pa was playing in ourl that.
[13:08] Speaker 3: Yeah, he was playing great, He's going that's what Nicko
[13:10] Speaker 3: was on one wing.
[13:12] Speaker 5: Shandorrell the Blake, no one loves himself more than the door.
[13:15] Speaker 5: I think Curtis Scott may have been even there that.
[13:19] Speaker 1: Joey Stimpson, Yeah, yeah, we had a fair.
[13:21] Speaker 5: Feit Darren Shannie, Vin Diesel one of the great chins
[13:24] Speaker 5: of our generation. Well, we had a good side and
[13:27] Speaker 5: we broke we broke the record for the most wins
[13:29] Speaker 5: and then we just choked in the finals thanks to
[13:31] Speaker 5: Jamal fin half.
[13:33] Speaker 1: Todd Murphy, Yeah he was good. Toddy was good.
[13:35] Speaker 3: It was a coins and cut player.
[13:37] Speaker 2: Yeah, it just didn't get an opportunity at first gradele
[13:39] Speaker 2: But I don't think.
[13:40] Speaker 1: He no, he didn't really he was.
[13:41] Speaker 5: It was it was you and him sort of with
[13:43] Speaker 5: the fom half backs of the camp. You were your
[13:46] Speaker 5: two old balls.
[13:46] Speaker 1: Well not you weren't old older, yeah, because you're a
[13:49] Speaker 1: hell a lot older now. But twenty eight, yeah, twenty
[13:53] Speaker 1: eight then? Now o, god, how would you be in then?
[13:57] Speaker 3: Umm, I'm not good at mass Its twenty six? Yeah,
[14:00] Speaker 3: I reckon, Maybe it's twenty six.
[14:02] Speaker 1: Ah right, she wasn't actually that old to me, I
[14:05] Speaker 1: would have been twenty five. See.
[14:06] Speaker 5: I looked at you and Todd then in that game
[14:08] Speaker 5: and thought you both could have been like I looked
[14:10] Speaker 5: at you both, my dad.
[14:13] Speaker 3: That's what happens when you got a real job up there.
[14:15] Speaker 3: You weather a lot quicker.
[14:16] Speaker 1: Than any house. Right, that's sun mate. So how'd you
[14:21] Speaker 1: get there?
[14:21] Speaker 5: Like, how did you do the move from the queen
[14:24] Speaker 5: standing cap it? Was like the move was into the Titans.
[14:28] Speaker 5: How'd they come about?
[14:29] Speaker 2: Yeah, so obviously we had a great season as as
[14:33] Speaker 2: a club team there at Burly and went on to
[14:36] Speaker 2: win the company somehow, like genuinely, somehow.
[14:40] Speaker 3: I've got Player of the Year.
[14:41] Speaker 2: Like if you look at Harry Grant's stats, he would
[14:44] Speaker 2: have been getting three try assists the game, one hundred
[14:46] Speaker 2: and fifty run meters from hooker and just blown teams
[14:49] Speaker 2: apart purely himself. And I think the referees might have
[14:52] Speaker 2: given this award out because they gave it to me.
[14:54] Speaker 1: I don't feel sober Harry's yeah, he doesn't.
[14:58] Speaker 2: But I generally thought he deserved it, And it was
[15:02] Speaker 2: kind of like if we've won Queensland Cup, I've got
[15:05] Speaker 2: Player of the Year. Like if I don't get anything
[15:07] Speaker 2: from this, like it's a clear indication that you know,
[15:10] Speaker 2: nothing's going to be there.
[15:11] Speaker 3: Nothing came from it. And then in twenty twenty, at.
[15:15] Speaker 2: The start of the trial season, Burley always played the
[15:19] Speaker 2: Titans in a trial game, so then we had our
[15:22] Speaker 2: best Cup team and they had a couple of guys
[15:24] Speaker 2: playing from NRL and we end up winning. We played
[15:27] Speaker 2: about fifty minutes our Cup team was like eighteen six
[15:31] Speaker 2: and then this is when Holdbrook just took over and
[15:33] Speaker 2: Jim Dimmick I.
[15:34] Speaker 1: Actually remember here and hearing that result. It was made
[15:37] Speaker 1: about it, and.
[15:38] Speaker 2: Then my Queensland Cup coach. That was his first year
[15:40] Speaker 2: at the Titans as an assistant. And then they've kind
[15:42] Speaker 2: of gone, oh, who's this guy, what's to go with him?
[15:45] Speaker 2: Why was he not in the system type thing? And
[15:48] Speaker 2: I had a meeting with Ezra how and he said, mate,
[15:50] Speaker 2: would love to get your come up for a train
[15:52] Speaker 2: and trial. And I was very against it because I
[15:55] Speaker 2: always did that. That'd bring you up the day before.
[15:57] Speaker 2: Can you come into a day tomorrow saying you don't
[15:59] Speaker 2: get paid you're having a day off work, so you
[16:01] Speaker 2: lose the money, but just being a nice guy. So
[16:03] Speaker 2: I was like, I did that for a long time
[16:05] Speaker 2: for them, and then I was just like, you know, nuts, Tom,
[16:07] Speaker 2: I'm not going to do it. Just give it to
[16:09] Speaker 2: some other young kid. And then my wife goes, if
[16:11] Speaker 2: you don't give it a crack now, you're going to
[16:14] Speaker 2: regret it time thing. And then I ended up signing
[16:17] Speaker 2: with them on March the sixth for about forty grand
[16:21] Speaker 2: for the rest of the season and then COVID was
[16:23] Speaker 2: like a couple of days later, So I went from
[16:26] Speaker 2: being a youth worker, COVID kicked in, and then all
[16:28] Speaker 2: of a sudden, I'm full time train And then they
[16:31] Speaker 2: had that big layoff period for COVID type.
[16:34] Speaker 1: And that wasn't sure if the season was going to go.
[16:35] Speaker 2: Yeah, So then in that period I just signed with them,
[16:38] Speaker 2: and you weren't allowed to leave your house and all
[16:39] Speaker 2: this stuff. So then then I was just had gym
[16:42] Speaker 2: at home and I was just in the gym every day,
[16:45] Speaker 2: even like I hide an assault bike just to do
[16:48] Speaker 2: a bit of cardio and stuff at home because I
[16:50] Speaker 2: was like, I'm going to go all in and give
[16:52] Speaker 2: it a shake ultra fit in that little eight or
[16:54] Speaker 2: nine week block and then was lucky enough to play
[16:57] Speaker 2: the rest of that season.
[16:58] Speaker 5: So did you play every base when the season come
[17:01] Speaker 5: back from that COVID layover?
[17:03] Speaker 1: Did you debut basically straight away?
[17:05] Speaker 6: Yeah?
[17:05] Speaker 2: Round three we played Cowboys up North and got a
[17:09] Speaker 2: bit of a touch up, but then played every game
[17:10] Speaker 2: for that twenty two.
[17:12] Speaker 1: When they came into that season because they only signed
[17:14] Speaker 1: you during that trial period. Who was the half back
[17:17] Speaker 1: supposed to be?
[17:18] Speaker 2: Well, they had Tyrone Roberts and Ash Taylor, and then
[17:20] Speaker 2: they had Toby and Tanner as the rookies coming through,
[17:23] Speaker 2: and they've seen me as this guy that could kind
[17:26] Speaker 2: of be the mix between let Ash and Tyrone. They're
[17:29] Speaker 2: our main harves. You can help us develop Tanner and
[17:31] Speaker 2: Toby type thing, and along the way you might get
[17:33] Speaker 2: a game and just a bit of luck. Film my
[17:36] Speaker 2: way and played every game since, so pretty grateful for it.
[17:39] Speaker 5: You call it luck, But I'm always a belief Sometimes, Jamal,
[17:42] Speaker 5: something happens. It can be just as simple as a
[17:45] Speaker 5: play or something that just gives you that.
[17:48] Speaker 1: Little bit of a kick.
[17:49] Speaker 5: If that makes sense. Yeah, you're almost bias is Brownie points.
[17:51] Speaker 5: Then going for was there anything that restract your mind?
[17:54] Speaker 5: Something at training, anything that really stood out for you?
[17:58] Speaker 2: Probably just I'm going to be myself, Like I've been
[18:01] Speaker 2: here a couple of times before, and I've tried to
[18:03] Speaker 2: change and it never worked out with the Titans. So
[18:05] Speaker 2: then I just said, if they're going to sign me,
[18:07] Speaker 2: this is how I play, this is what I do,
[18:09] Speaker 2: and if you like what I do, I'm just going
[18:11] Speaker 2: to keep doing that. And I think at the time
[18:13] Speaker 2: they probably needed someone a little bit like that. And
[18:15] Speaker 2: then just competing really hard every day training, like just
[18:19] Speaker 2: trying to win as much fitness as I can, applying myself,
[18:22] Speaker 2: asking the coaches what do you need from me? Type stuff,
[18:25] Speaker 2: and yeah, just bunker down with a couple of good
[18:28] Speaker 2: senior players, Like I really loved Dale Copley. He helped
[18:31] Speaker 2: me out a lot digs there, so you know, he
[18:34] Speaker 2: was my center for a period there. So just the
[18:36] Speaker 2: brains of him, what do you do at training and
[18:38] Speaker 2: stuff was really good. And then the other one was
[18:40] Speaker 2: Mitch Rain, like super super fit, competitive, competitive as anything,
[18:45] Speaker 2: but just the real good fella, like knock about with anyone.
[18:49] Speaker 2: So the were the two guys that probably steered Mel
[18:52] Speaker 2: along the right path there.
[18:53] Speaker 5: It's funny, isn't it, Like I think a late bloomer
[18:56] Speaker 5: sometimes it's having the guts to be yourself that makes
[19:02] Speaker 5: sense and do like, I think that's got a lot
[19:05] Speaker 5: to do with it, and I like it. You just
[19:08] Speaker 5: said something in the sort of spark something to me.
[19:10] Speaker 5: When I was younger and would make representative sides, I'd
[19:13] Speaker 5: feel like really awkward. I'd walk in and be like
[19:15] Speaker 5: first day at school, and you've got like blokes who
[19:17] Speaker 5: are legends there and you're going, I'm going, oh my god,
[19:21] Speaker 5: and eventually not making those sides. I remember things thinking
[19:23] Speaker 5: once I fucking blew it. Why did I go in
[19:25] Speaker 5: there just trying to be someone or not? And then
[19:28] Speaker 5: now the Blue got another chance, it.
[19:29] Speaker 1: Was completely different.
[19:30] Speaker 5: I just come hell at high water when I go
[19:33] Speaker 5: in there, I'm just going to do what I do
[19:35] Speaker 5: and see what happens.
[19:36] Speaker 1: And it didn't work out for me.
[19:37] Speaker 5: But anyway, unless I was going to ask, because you
[19:40] Speaker 5: were you said you were a late like obviously, people
[19:43] Speaker 5: who play in the NROL or they might come through
[19:46] Speaker 5: a schoolboys system and they play Australian school boys all
[19:48] Speaker 5: this representative stuff and then they think, you know, I
[19:50] Speaker 5: got a debut young, like I got to get into
[19:51] Speaker 5: the you because you see all these other people that
[19:53] Speaker 5: you've played with and against that debut in the NRL.
[19:56] Speaker 1: Your case is so much different.
[19:57] Speaker 5: There are plenty of players who have taken that long
[20:00] Speaker 5: route like you have how many periods during it where
[20:02] Speaker 5: you're like, like, nurl's no longer even on the cards.
[20:06] Speaker 1: For me, I'm just happy to play footy in the
[20:08] Speaker 1: Queensland car.
[20:09] Speaker 2: Yeah, I was lucky enough. I actually played like was
[20:11] Speaker 2: your school boys and sell my age. He used to
[20:13] Speaker 2: play NYC back on the weekends before the NRL team,
[20:17] Speaker 2: So coming out of school boys playing that just assuming
[20:21] Speaker 2: things are going to happen. Like Jaki Chiborvich was in
[20:23] Speaker 2: the team, he debuted quite early.
[20:26] Speaker 3: Syrian and Curtis Syrian and a couple other guys.
[20:28] Speaker 2: You're like, oh, like I'm next in line, Like this
[20:30] Speaker 2: is the progression, and then it just didn't happen for me.
[20:33] Speaker 2: And then in I was lucky enough to debut in
[20:35] Speaker 2: twenty seventeen, and then at the end of the end
[20:38] Speaker 2: of that year, I played the last game against the
[20:40] Speaker 2: Chucks Neil Henry binsacked. The Titans didn't really have a coach,
[20:43] Speaker 2: and then I didn't get a gig, So it wasn't
[20:46] Speaker 2: until twenty eighteen season. My mindset was I'm just going
[20:48] Speaker 2: to be a good Cup player and I want to
[20:51] Speaker 2: try and be successful as possible at Burley and then
[20:54] Speaker 2: just just make a good pathway for the younger kids
[20:56] Speaker 2: that come through. Like that was my passion, So I
[20:58] Speaker 2: didn't really have a focus on I'm going to try
[21:00] Speaker 2: and do everything I can to get back in the NRL.
[21:02] Speaker 2: I kind of went the other way and just put
[21:04] Speaker 2: the club and our team first and it kind of
[21:07] Speaker 2: takes care of itself when you have that perspective.
[21:09] Speaker 5: I guess it's funny when you do that because then
[21:11] Speaker 5: it's like you get back into that NURL arena and
[21:13] Speaker 5: you get a chance, there's almost no pressure on you,
[21:16] Speaker 5: like from yourself, Like pressure is all from within, right,
[21:18] Speaker 5: Like young kids go, you know, I need to get
[21:20] Speaker 5: out there and do all these big plays in my debut,
[21:23] Speaker 5: and you know, so everyone thinks I'm a superstar, but
[21:25] Speaker 5: you've almost come to the fact of like, all right,
[21:28] Speaker 5: I've had my chance, Like I'm just going to be
[21:30] Speaker 5: the best Queens Cup player I have And almost when
[21:32] Speaker 5: you get back in that arena, it's like this is
[21:33] Speaker 5: all just a bonus for Yeah.
[21:35] Speaker 2: And like I said that Jimmy Graham the other week
[21:37] Speaker 2: on his podcast, if you were to look at me
[21:39] Speaker 2: from eighteen to twenty two, you'd be like, what's this
[21:42] Speaker 2: guy's identity?
[21:42] Speaker 3: Like what type of player is he? Like sometimes he's good,
[21:45] Speaker 3: sometimes he's shit, Like where's the development type? So you're
[21:48] Speaker 3: kind of in that just up and down form period.
[21:51] Speaker 2: And it wasn't until twenty sixteen when I first went
[21:53] Speaker 2: the burlier coaches like, all right, you see the team
[21:55] Speaker 2: around well and you kick well, that's all I need
[21:57] Speaker 2: you to do, and I can help you with your
[21:59] Speaker 2: defensive stuf. So when I felt valued on those parts
[22:02] Speaker 2: that like, I'm just going to kick well and see
[22:04] Speaker 2: the team around and everything else will come off the
[22:06] Speaker 2: back of that. So my identity was kicking along, chasing
[22:09] Speaker 2: hard and putting the team first. So then when I
[22:11] Speaker 2: got my opportunity in twenty twenty, I had an identity about.
[22:14] Speaker 3: Myself like this is how I play and this is
[22:16] Speaker 3: what I do. Well, you either like it or you don't.
[22:18] Speaker 2: Whereas when you're young, you're trying to watch him play.
[22:21] Speaker 2: I'm going to play like him or none. That doesn't work,
[22:24] Speaker 2: I'm going to You're always chopping and changing your style
[22:26] Speaker 2: because then there's no consistency. Whereas I just knew from
[22:30] Speaker 2: when I joined at Bury this is my identity.
[22:33] Speaker 3: Yeah, this is made as the player.
[22:34] Speaker 5: That's a great way of putting a jamal Yeah, because
[22:36] Speaker 5: everyone needs to focus and it's so easy to go
[22:39] Speaker 5: in with his broad focus and which means you don't
[22:42] Speaker 5: you focus on nothing as opposed to you just going right.
[22:45] Speaker 5: That's who I am, and that's what I've watched Tenor Boyd.
[22:50] Speaker 5: You mentioned me before the Tenor Boyd. I'm looking at
[22:53] Speaker 5: him and I think he Andrew Webster watching him sort
[22:56] Speaker 5: of progress. I think it made sense to me that
[22:58] Speaker 5: I thought, okay, he's got him out there. It looked
[23:01] Speaker 5: as though this year he just said, I need you
[23:04] Speaker 5: to make your tackles, I need you to kick well
[23:06] Speaker 5: and that, and just again just push the team around
[23:09] Speaker 5: the park. And from the confidence he's gained off that
[23:12] Speaker 5: brick by brittis extended on his game started to venture
[23:15] Speaker 5: out a little bit. Jamal, I want to ask you
[23:18] Speaker 5: something here, and I've got a vested interest in this question,
[23:21] Speaker 5: but I think you're in a better better position than
[23:25] Speaker 5: anyone to answer this. You've played at two teams in
[23:29] Speaker 5: two cities, the polar opposites. You've played at the Gold Coast,
[23:33] Speaker 5: which is a hollow of destination, you know, beautiful bleaches,
[23:37] Speaker 5: great weather and all of that. And you've played at Canberra,
[23:41] Speaker 5: which is a cold place. You know, it's a hard
[23:43] Speaker 5: place to play, boiling hot in the summer, cold in
[23:47] Speaker 5: the winter, and it's not a holoda of destination. People
[23:49] Speaker 5: might go down and said the War Memorial Quest to
[23:52] Speaker 5: go down for the men things like that, you know,
[23:54] Speaker 5: but it's it's not a town that is renowned as
[23:56] Speaker 5: a beautiful, pretty town itself. Tell me the difference was
[24:02] Speaker 5: it harder to focus up north on the Gold Coast.
[24:06] Speaker 2: Well, for me, it was COVID, so you weren't allowed
[24:08] Speaker 2: to leave your housecha, which which worked out perfect for
[24:11] Speaker 2: me because I was all about footy. So like I
[24:14] Speaker 2: had my opportunity, I'm just going to go all in.
[24:16] Speaker 2: So you weren't allowed, you couldn't go to cafes, you
[24:19] Speaker 2: couldn't go to the beach and all that type of stuff.
[24:21] Speaker 2: And I'm a country kids, I'm not going to surf
[24:22] Speaker 2: and all that. But if it wasn't COVID, there's so
[24:25] Speaker 2: many other things on the Gold Coast you can do
[24:27] Speaker 2: before football, if.
[24:29] Speaker 3: That makes sense. Like if you do you surf to
[24:34] Speaker 3: you want to get out, like.
[24:36] Speaker 2: If it's a mad morning and a sour is pumping
[24:38] Speaker 2: and you can get out there at five point thirty
[24:40] Speaker 2: in the morning before training, like I'm going to go
[24:42] Speaker 2: and do that, right, So then footy it's a priority,
[24:45] Speaker 2: but it's probably not number one or two where it
[24:48] Speaker 2: is interesting, whereas just because there's so many other things
[24:51] Speaker 2: to do, right, and it's an attractive place and you
[24:53] Speaker 2: might have friends that come up for the weekend they
[24:55] Speaker 2: want to go out and get on the piss and
[24:56] Speaker 2: you're kind of like, ah, do this do that type
[24:59] Speaker 2: thing And this is just my opinion. But when you
[25:01] Speaker 2: go to Canberra, there's not all that stuff to do.
[25:05] Speaker 2: So down there everyone lives and Gold Coaster spread out.
[25:08] Speaker 2: Everyone lives here there everywhere, so it could be an
[25:10] Speaker 2: hour apart. So it's not like we're going to go
[25:12] Speaker 2: for a coffee. We live other ends of the goalie.
[25:14] Speaker 2: In Canberra, everyone's fifteen minutes away. So yeah, if someone
[25:17] Speaker 2: goes for a coffee, there's always a group boys going
[25:19] Speaker 2: to coffee lunch and it's yeah, it's just all football first,
[25:25] Speaker 2: and when football's going well, all the other things just
[25:27] Speaker 2: kind of fall into place.
[25:28] Speaker 3: So that's where I reckon.
[25:30] Speaker 5: It's like that Melbourne mentality, like the same thing that
[25:32] Speaker 5: people say about the Storm when no one's from there
[25:34] Speaker 5: and they.
[25:34] Speaker 1: Get together, it's like a community.
[25:36] Speaker 5: Yeah, do you I suppose it's good for if they
[25:39] Speaker 5: sign If Canberra sign a player, they know they're signing
[25:42] Speaker 5: a player because they're want to come down and play
[25:44] Speaker 5: for that club and to lock in and get the
[25:46] Speaker 5: best out of their footage because there's like you said,
[25:49] Speaker 5: there is nothing really in camera, like you're you're not going,
[25:52] Speaker 5: Oh you know, I have a look at this location
[25:53] Speaker 5: to leave and they go, this would be a great
[25:55] Speaker 5: place for me to go and take my family because
[25:57] Speaker 5: you know the kids can get down to the beach
[25:58] Speaker 5: and that you know that you're signing a player because
[26:00] Speaker 5: he wants to work hard. You bring success to that class.
[26:03] Speaker 2: Yeah, And I think the one thing Stick does with
[26:06] Speaker 2: his senior players that he gets the players to reach.
[26:09] Speaker 3: Out to someone that they're going to sign.
[26:11] Speaker 2: Like I had a message from Elliot Whitehead, who's an
[26:14] Speaker 2: international player for England. Big Papa, send me a message,
[26:18] Speaker 2: Charn Niko, Kox, Dad send me a message.
[26:20] Speaker 3: I don't know. I didn't know them at the time,
[26:22] Speaker 3: but they've all sent me a message.
[26:23] Speaker 2: Hey, when you get down here, if you need a
[26:24] Speaker 2: hand moving into your house, I'll come help you catch
[26:27] Speaker 2: up for a feed, like introduce you to our family,
[26:30] Speaker 2: all that type of stuff. But when I signed the
[26:32] Speaker 2: Goldie there wasn't any of that just because of down there,
[26:35] Speaker 2: it's no one has family there, so they really get
[26:38] Speaker 2: around each other and do things together.
[26:40] Speaker 3: So that was a big difference.
[26:42] Speaker 2: And then just the people down there, like the players
[26:44] Speaker 2: with Papa Wraps, Jackie White and Elliott Whitehead to fun
[26:50] Speaker 2: Jaron Broker, like they know when to work hard, but
[26:52] Speaker 2: then they know also like if shit's gone bad, we
[26:55] Speaker 2: can also have a little bit of fun and it's
[26:57] Speaker 2: not just all footing and shit hits the fan. They
[26:59] Speaker 2: know to be professional, but then there's a real good
[27:02] Speaker 2: fun side to him as well.
[27:03] Speaker 1: It's Jamal.
[27:06] Speaker 5: I played a lot against Rickey Stewart and Ricky for
[27:10] Speaker 5: me was the greatest player ever played against. You know,
[27:13] Speaker 5: Alfie was unbelievable. I had just a special admiration for Ricky.
[27:16] Speaker 5: The one made He could just conduct things, mate. It
[27:19] Speaker 5: was the first player to be able to throw left
[27:21] Speaker 5: to right and right to left, you know, thirty meters
[27:23] Speaker 5: torpedo kicking everything. It's just a beautiful player. But he's
[27:27] Speaker 5: a hard man to play for, particularly you know what
[27:30] Speaker 5: he was as player. I think to a certain extent
[27:32] Speaker 5: he expects that from his playmakers. Was that was your
[27:35] Speaker 5: hard task master on you, Jamal.
[27:37] Speaker 2: We had a different relationship to be honestly, Like like
[27:40] Speaker 2: I said before, I knew my old internet and what
[27:42] Speaker 2: I was about and kind of similar thing out a
[27:44] Speaker 2: phone call with him for about twenty five minutes and
[27:47] Speaker 2: he's like, mate, I want you to come down here.
[27:48] Speaker 2: I love you kicking game, I love you stead team around.
[27:50] Speaker 2: There's a couple of areas defensively in that that I
[27:52] Speaker 2: can help you out with. And then, yeah, our relationship
[27:56] Speaker 2: was always different, like he's is like when you're in
[27:59] Speaker 2: he's the big smart ass, he's into everyone, cheeky ass,
[28:02] Speaker 2: which is probably similar to myself. But then when you
[28:04] Speaker 2: lose the toys around their cord and he's big fucking silk.
[28:08] Speaker 2: But just because he was like that, I'm still gonna
[28:11] Speaker 2: be myself and get into him. So I think our
[28:13] Speaker 2: personality is just kind of clicked clicked a little bit. Yeah,
[28:17] Speaker 2: and then he could challenge me and then I'll be like, oh,
[28:20] Speaker 2: I'm gonna I'm going to go and do it type thing.
[28:22] Speaker 2: And then there's other times where I'll be like, mate,
[28:24] Speaker 2: I'm not as talented as you. I'm just a hard worker.
[28:26] Speaker 2: Because he'd be I want you to get the ball
[28:28] Speaker 2: here thirty meters out face the corner place. I'm gonna
[28:30] Speaker 2: kick it back down the middle for the fullback here,
[28:32] Speaker 2: do it once and perfect, and then I'll be out
[28:35] Speaker 2: there for the next twenty balls trying to kick and
[28:37] Speaker 2: get one like yeah. So just like he had that,
[28:40] Speaker 2: But I think he just understood that there's a little
[28:42] Speaker 2: bit in me. But I'm someone that has to really
[28:45] Speaker 2: work hard. And like I said before, whether it was
[28:47] Speaker 2: he was in a good mood or a bad mood,
[28:49] Speaker 2: I'm always just going to be into him because that's
[28:51] Speaker 2: not my issue, Like that's on him.
[28:53] Speaker 1: So does he ever rub him up the wrong way
[28:54] Speaker 1: doing that?
[28:55] Speaker 2: Nah?
[28:55] Speaker 3: Not really like he'd come here and super have y.
[28:58] Speaker 3: Hi'm like, mane, you get a root last night.
[29:02] Speaker 2: And like get into me tire stuff, or we'll be
[29:04] Speaker 2: like Jed, you get fed last night and he goes, yeah,
[29:06] Speaker 2: dad's in a good mood today kind of him. But
[29:09] Speaker 2: I only cop two personal one on one sprays from stick.
[29:13] Speaker 2: One of them was in the middle of scrimmage. And
[29:15] Speaker 2: this is probably the part where somehows would be like, fuck,
[29:18] Speaker 2: I'm sick of him because you're doing thirteen and V
[29:20] Speaker 2: thirteen live scrimmage and he's one meter behind you. In
[29:23] Speaker 2: live playtime, you get the ball, drop someone on the
[29:26] Speaker 2: get the ball, do this and you're trying to think
[29:27] Speaker 2: about the team and the structures.
[29:29] Speaker 3: But because he gets so excited.
[29:31] Speaker 1: He'd stand behind you as a half back and actually
[29:33] Speaker 1: be telling you what, get.
[29:34] Speaker 3: The ball, drop this person.
[29:35] Speaker 2: And then one day you're like, well, thirty meters out
[29:38] Speaker 2: in yardage and he go get the ball and fucking
[29:40] Speaker 2: kick it a long and I was like, nah, got
[29:42] Speaker 2: the ball, drop taps underneath me the gaze, fuck you
[29:46] Speaker 2: c word. I'm just gone, oh no, got the ball.
[29:49] Speaker 2: The next play kicked it dead. And then he's just
[29:52] Speaker 2: stopped the whole drill. He's like you you always in
[29:55] Speaker 2: my fucking office, ask me how to get better, and
[29:57] Speaker 2: when I tell you, you don't fucking listen. I wish
[30:02] Speaker 2: Tommy's starting at puple here because they just got into
[30:04] Speaker 2: me for so long after that, piercing themselves laugh.
[30:07] Speaker 3: And then I was just like, ah, fair enough, Like yeah,
[30:09] Speaker 3: that's the point.
[30:10] Speaker 2: I am in there all the time trying to get better,
[30:12] Speaker 2: but come on, mate, you've got to have a feel
[30:13] Speaker 2: for scrimmage sometime. And then the other one was on
[30:16] Speaker 2: the try line and we're talking about this short side
[30:19] Speaker 2: playing if they have I thing, It was like, if
[30:21] Speaker 2: they have five numbers on the short side. We're gonna
[30:23] Speaker 2: go there and if they put five and a half,
[30:25] Speaker 2: I'll go the other side. And Stick goes, No, we're
[30:28] Speaker 2: just just fucking go theren and run the play.
[30:29] Speaker 3: And I said the start.
[30:30] Speaker 2: If they put five and a half, their mate, I'm
[30:32] Speaker 2: going the other way, and he goes, you get the
[30:34] Speaker 2: ball funk off out there and tap it.
[30:35] Speaker 3: And then him and Starla we're talking on the big
[30:37] Speaker 3: pup and started. But he's got that in him.
[30:42] Speaker 2: But then as soon as your training session's over, he
[30:45] Speaker 2: can come back to being your mate if you're if
[30:47] Speaker 2: you treat him the same. But yeah, once the bridges burnt,
[30:50] Speaker 2: I think it's Burnt.
[30:52] Speaker 5: I've got a lot of admiration for your your camera
[30:54] Speaker 5: crew because he's very much like work hard, play hard
[30:57] Speaker 5: that that camera crew when you were down there were
[30:59] Speaker 5: so close. It seems like he's got such a good bond.
[31:02] Speaker 5: And Staralo we had Stalo on he last year. He
[31:04] Speaker 5: said the same thing.
[31:05] Speaker 1: My question, do you because Stalo, although he's not the
[31:09] Speaker 1: oldest in the squad like Big Papa, he sort of
[31:13] Speaker 1: strikes me as like the social leader. Slash Ricky's like
[31:17] Speaker 1: little right.
[31:17] Speaker 5: Handed man like he's mini me, yes, Papa, Yeah, it
[31:20] Speaker 5: is like he's little mini me, like doctor Reel.
[31:22] Speaker 3: Yeah, he's got that about him.
[31:24] Speaker 2: Like I think everyone probably thinks Starlo' is a lot older,
[31:27] Speaker 2: Like when I went down now, I thought he was
[31:28] Speaker 2: a lot older than what he was.
[31:30] Speaker 3: I think the first year were there.
[31:32] Speaker 2: I think he's Missus had her twenty first birthday like
[31:34] Speaker 2: the first month or them like me and kids nearly
[31:37] Speaker 2: thirty twenty first. But he's definitely that, like he's a mad,
[31:41] Speaker 2: mad personality to have around, Like he's just never off,
[31:44] Speaker 2: like he's always on, energetic and he can just get
[31:47] Speaker 2: the boys together for a good time and can just
[31:48] Speaker 2: spin yarns and like the best thing about Stala he
[31:51] Speaker 2: trains his ass off.
[31:52] Speaker 3: But then he knows, all right, if we're having a beer,
[31:55] Speaker 3: we're having a beer.
[31:56] Speaker 2: He goes hard and then everyone everyone buys into that.
[31:58] Speaker 2: So I think he's someone that really ignores everyone down there.
[32:02] Speaker 2: And the relationship that he has a Big Pipa is
[32:04] Speaker 2: like he's the only one that can bag out the
[32:07] Speaker 2: Simon's and Big Papa just sits there and laughs about
[32:09] Speaker 2: it because their relationships so mad. But someone else Pupa
[32:12] Speaker 2: is probably gonna burn up and shut up, mate, But
[32:14] Speaker 2: because it's Tommy, it's just funny.
[32:16] Speaker 3: He's just got that like you can just hold the
[32:17] Speaker 3: room and.
[32:19] Speaker 1: Charming.
[32:20] Speaker 4: Yeah, he's such he's like a what do you call it?
[32:23] Speaker 1: He's just so like he's so rough as.
[32:25] Speaker 4: Guts, but it's like in a charming way. You can
[32:27] Speaker 4: just get away with it.
[32:27] Speaker 1: Do you know what?
[32:32] Speaker 5: He's not good with authority, you know what, it's almost okay,
[32:37] Speaker 5: we're going to bring something up here. You know how
[32:39] Speaker 5: when they you know, they say, oh, when when this
[32:42] Speaker 5: comedian loses weight, they're not funny anymore, you know they
[32:45] Speaker 5: say that. I think it's the same And Dad, you'll
[32:47] Speaker 5: attested this. People who aren't tall funnier.
[32:51] Speaker 1: Do you know what I mean by that?
[32:54] Speaker 5: Well, I mean people who lack high more humorous. Yes,
[32:57] Speaker 5: that's something you don't know if there's any way, I
[33:00] Speaker 5: don't know how you think I would get that. I
[33:04] Speaker 5: just mean in the sense where you know how they say, like,
[33:05] Speaker 5: you know, like the chubby comedian's funny because he takes
[33:08] Speaker 5: a piece out of himself and whatnot.
[33:10] Speaker 1: Yes, people have a certain amount of vulnerability to be funny. Correct, gotcha?
[33:13] Speaker 1: You have a brad pick doing jokes. That's what I mean.
[33:15] Speaker 5: If Channing Tatum was out there and he's getting into
[33:18] Speaker 5: the Samoan boys, I reckon.
[33:19] Speaker 1: Josh Papa Lee, he's sprazy. He just yet what he's
[33:22] Speaker 1: asked with him. Yeah, same as ball blocks on Big Papa.
[33:25] Speaker 1: Do you are for me on Big You're not a
[33:29] Speaker 1: ball You've got a two pay on Big Papa.
[33:32] Speaker 5: Because there's that famous moment with you and Josh Papa
[33:35] Speaker 5: leeway you on that on the quick quick twenty meters restart.
[33:39] Speaker 1: You tap it and you go and you make this
[33:41] Speaker 1: big line break.
[33:41] Speaker 5: Everyone goes Jamal fogget his home and Big Papa runs
[33:44] Speaker 5: you down. Yes, that's when you're at the Titans. Then
[33:47] Speaker 5: you signed with Cambra. What was the initial first impression
[33:50] Speaker 5: between you and Big Papa, Because that moment was so viral,
[33:53] Speaker 5: I imagine it was a bit of an awkward interaction.
[33:55] Speaker 1: Yeah.
[33:56] Speaker 3: Well after that moment, I didn't leave the house about
[33:58] Speaker 3: three months.
[34:00] Speaker 1: Honestly, are you those kids to check on you?
[34:02] Speaker 2: Well, I'll do school drop off or picked up and
[34:04] Speaker 2: then the teachers at the school, Big Publa Chase. Now
[34:08] Speaker 2: I mean I'm here to pick up my kids, mate,
[34:10] Speaker 2: Like I was just copping it everywhere. Then Budgies came
[34:12] Speaker 2: out with a pair of Budgies.
[34:13] Speaker 1: They sent it to the boys and the like they
[34:16] Speaker 1: have like one of you getting chased down and budget.
[34:18] Speaker 3: It was literally him ankle tapping me on the back
[34:20] Speaker 3: of Budgies. So I was like, well, if you're going
[34:23] Speaker 3: to make a pair, can you at least send me some,
[34:25] Speaker 3: you know, they sent me a pair. But then so
[34:27] Speaker 3: that was in twenty twenty.
[34:29] Speaker 2: We played him again at Cogra the year after, and
[34:33] Speaker 2: this is like after that moment, the first interaction I
[34:36] Speaker 2: had with him was post game, I've come on the
[34:39] Speaker 2: field to shake his hand. He didn't say anything to me,
[34:41] Speaker 2: just cuddled me and pointed at me to the camera.
[34:43] Speaker 5: Like, oh, this is the guy.
[34:45] Speaker 2: And I was just like, oh, like, I can't say anything,
[34:48] Speaker 2: like I'm just I'm just finding my way about twenty
[34:50] Speaker 2: games in my career, he's played what two fifty or so.
[34:55] Speaker 3: I let the big fella have his thing.
[34:56] Speaker 2: But then once I got down there, he's like, honestly,
[34:59] Speaker 2: I reckon, he's the most genuine, nicest human being I've
[35:02] Speaker 2: come across.
[35:02] Speaker 3: In the game.
[35:03] Speaker 2: Like his local might have been three down from me,
[35:05] Speaker 2: so I hade the walk past it. Every morning he'd
[35:06] Speaker 2: come over, give you a big cuddle and handshake. How
[35:08] Speaker 2: you going, how's the family like? To think of his
[35:12] Speaker 2: stature in the game, Yeah, and then you have his personality.
[35:15] Speaker 2: You think he hasn't even debute, Like he's just so
[35:18] Speaker 2: humble and just like I reckon, he's the most genuine
[35:21] Speaker 2: nicest person within the game.
[35:23] Speaker 5: Jack, will you interaction with him like a couple and
[35:26] Speaker 5: a nice one after what happened?
[35:27] Speaker 6: Yeah, after I burden camera, he came up to me
[35:30] Speaker 6: and he said, like, I won't say exactly what he said,
[35:33] Speaker 6: but it was something around how funny my mates were
[35:35] Speaker 6: up in the box carrying on during the game. It
[35:37] Speaker 6: was COVID year, so it was like, well a twenty
[35:39] Speaker 6: percent field stadium and then a bunch of really drunk
[35:41] Speaker 6: twenty year old sitting there in a box.
[35:43] Speaker 4: But nah, he was just really really nice, and he
[35:46] Speaker 4: like the way he congratulated me.
[35:47] Speaker 1: He just didn't have to do it.
[35:48] Speaker 4: After the game was really Yeah, Well I'll never forget.
[35:50] Speaker 5: It was probably nice to you because the first run
[35:52] Speaker 5: you had a him, he nearly like sent you back
[35:54] Speaker 5: to under twenties, made hit you that hard.
[35:56] Speaker 4: It's probably the worst run I've had in first grade
[35:58] Speaker 4: as well. I look like that kookie.
[36:00] Speaker 1: Yeah, I run and I said, you know how you
[36:02] Speaker 1: always wanted to be an early child.
[36:05] Speaker 3: It was, it was.
[36:06] Speaker 5: It was one of the great hits. It was a
[36:08] Speaker 5: welcome to first GA moment for you. It was the
[36:10] Speaker 5: only second to Jamal being ankle tapped by Big Papa
[36:14] Speaker 5: in Papa's career.
[36:15] Speaker 1: I would say, but he.
[36:17] Speaker 5: I want to ask you because obviously the move to Manley,
[36:20] Speaker 5: and you're listening to you talk about the players that
[36:23] Speaker 5: you played with down there, your relationship with Sticky, how
[36:26] Speaker 5: tough was it to then make that decision to go
[36:28] Speaker 5: I'm coming to the Northern Beaches Manley.
[36:30] Speaker 2: Yeah, well at the start, so there was a clause.
[36:33] Speaker 2: You know everyone can talk in November one. Yeah, My
[36:36] Speaker 2: clause was Raiders had a decision to make until round six,
[36:40] Speaker 2: so I couldn't negotiate that whole period until they said
[36:42] Speaker 2: yes or no round six.
[36:44] Speaker 3: So I reckon.
[36:45] Speaker 2: I rang the club three times from pre season up
[36:48] Speaker 2: until round six, trying to say, like I just want
[36:51] Speaker 2: one year deal, Like can I not stay? I don't
[36:53] Speaker 2: want any more money, I just want the same thing
[36:55] Speaker 2: one more year. I understand Ethan's here whatever else. And
[36:58] Speaker 2: then I actually messaged Big Papa. I was a little
[37:00] Speaker 2: bit frush and I was like, mate, what do I do?
[37:02] Speaker 2: And he goes, mate, just don't don't seem too desperate.
[37:05] Speaker 2: Something will work out for you. And I just sat
[37:07] Speaker 2: there and I'm like, fuck, that's that's actually pretty cool
[37:09] Speaker 2: because I'm kind of using all my energy to try
[37:12] Speaker 2: and stay there. So I just just keep playing good
[37:14] Speaker 2: footing and everything else will looked after itself. So he
[37:16] Speaker 2: actually gave me some good advice. And then the one
[37:20] Speaker 2: thing that I did do, I rang Seeds to say, hey, mate,
[37:22] Speaker 2: I'm gonna come to merely accept it, but I don't
[37:24] Speaker 2: want you to tell anyone else.
[37:25] Speaker 3: I want to ring. I want to talk to Stick
[37:27] Speaker 3: tomorrow morning at training gaze yep, no where. He's pleasure
[37:30] Speaker 3: to have you on board. Mate. Once you have a
[37:31] Speaker 3: chat to him, let me know.
[37:32] Speaker 2: So sleepless night, I didn't get much sleep because I
[37:35] Speaker 2: was like, he's either gonna say I'm happy for you,
[37:38] Speaker 2: or he's gonna try and fight me and his little
[37:39] Speaker 2: coaches Blox upstairs because he's the Stick is either going
[37:43] Speaker 2: to be really emotional and just erupt or he's going
[37:46] Speaker 2: to be like good about it.
[37:48] Speaker 1: I felt that.
[37:48] Speaker 3: I felt that, and then went in there and it
[37:52] Speaker 3: actually went really well.
[37:53] Speaker 2: Like I was actually like very nervous, couldn't sit still,
[37:56] Speaker 2: couldn't get my words out, and he just said, mate,
[37:58] Speaker 2: I'm I'm actually very happy for you. You you and
[38:00] Speaker 2: the family, and then went downstairs and we trained, and
[38:04] Speaker 2: by the time I got off the training field, it
[38:07] Speaker 2: was all across social media and that, so I didn't
[38:09] Speaker 2: really have an opportunity to tell the whole playing group,
[38:12] Speaker 2: but I did tell the ones that I was close
[38:14] Speaker 2: to that that's what I'm going to do because because
[38:16] Speaker 2: it's hard, right, like you get so close to people,
[38:19] Speaker 2: you kind of feel like you're betraying them.
[38:20] Speaker 1: Feels like you're cheating.
[38:21] Speaker 2: Yeah, but you're not, because you're looking after myself. Like
[38:24] Speaker 2: you guys are all sort of you have professional contracts
[38:27] Speaker 2: in that. But I've got to look after myself and
[38:28] Speaker 2: the family. And I think that's the part that everyone
[38:31] Speaker 2: understood really well down now, that like I'm looking after
[38:34] Speaker 2: me and missus and kids.
[38:35] Speaker 3: And that's what you've got to do.
[38:36] Speaker 5: So as much heartbreak as was last year's final series,
[38:40] Speaker 5: Jamal it was the most incredible final series I've ever seen.
[38:43] Speaker 5: The game that you both played against the Broncos. I
[38:45] Speaker 5: have never seen a game like it in my life.
[38:48] Speaker 5: In there watching the game and there'll be I know
[38:52] Speaker 5: how much it hurts, but the day will come where
[38:54] Speaker 5: you'll be sitting near your grandkids and you'll put it
[38:56] Speaker 5: on and say, just have a look at this.
[38:58] Speaker 1: It was to be a part of that game. Can
[39:01] Speaker 1: you describe it?
[39:02] Speaker 3: Yeah, well, someone asked me this the other day.
[39:05] Speaker 2: Like you just in the moment, you just think this
[39:07] Speaker 2: is what we do, we play footy, so you're not
[39:09] Speaker 2: in that fans point of view where it's really exciting,
[39:12] Speaker 2: and then you're kind of down, like for us, like
[39:14] Speaker 2: that first twenty minute period, like we're playing great footy,
[39:17] Speaker 2: like this is what we've done all year up against
[39:19] Speaker 2: a good team, Like things are going well. Then all
[39:21] Speaker 2: of a sudden they had the momentum for a little
[39:23] Speaker 2: bit and you're like, oh shit, like we've got to,
[39:25] Speaker 2: you know, try and get back on track here otherwise
[39:27] Speaker 2: it's going to be too far gone.
[39:29] Speaker 3: So I reckon.
[39:29] Speaker 2: There might have been two or three periods where we
[39:31] Speaker 2: were on top, they were coming back. We got back
[39:33] Speaker 2: out to a leite and then obviously, like some Superstar
[39:36] Speaker 2: players just just have a knack for it, and Reese
[39:39] Speaker 2: Walsh like the stuff that he got sent tend and
[39:42] Speaker 2: they been him and Hudson and then all of a
[39:44] Speaker 2: sudden when he came back out, he just turned it
[39:46] Speaker 2: on his head. But we have probably had a couple
[39:47] Speaker 2: of moments where like we should have just just iced it,
[39:51] Speaker 2: And especially myself being that senior half, you're probably like, oh,
[39:55] Speaker 2: I wish I did that better, But that's when you
[39:57] Speaker 2: stop playing after game, you probably look back, I could
[39:59] Speaker 2: have done this better, But when you're in the moment,
[40:01] Speaker 2: it's obviously a little bit hard.
[40:03] Speaker 3: And then the way that we lost it was.
[40:05] Speaker 2: Probably the hard thing too, right like we're what was
[40:09] Speaker 2: there like thirty seconds ago or something within the end,
[40:11] Speaker 2: and then they get the penalty and then extra extra point.
[40:14] Speaker 2: Then Jetty bought it back and I scored the try,
[40:17] Speaker 2: and then they said no to knock on and then
[40:20] Speaker 2: obviously we had also at a moment where.
[40:23] Speaker 3: Tried to set up for a field goun I just
[40:24] Speaker 3: missed the left of the post.
[40:25] Speaker 2: Like there moments that the Superstars own and I just
[40:28] Speaker 2: didn't own own that one. And then obviously Benny Hunt
[40:32] Speaker 2: come up clutch at the end. But everyone that speaks
[40:35] Speaker 2: to me about that say what you say. But right
[40:38] Speaker 2: now as a player, it's kind of like, I don't
[40:40] Speaker 2: want to watch it, like fun, Yeah, it's just one
[40:42] Speaker 2: of those moments.
[40:44] Speaker 5: I just think it was the most incredible game. There
[40:46] Speaker 5: were so many massive moments that happened in that game.
[40:48] Speaker 5: You actually so we watched We watched it out the back.
[40:51] Speaker 1: In the green room.
[40:52] Speaker 5: There was myself, there was actually there was myself and
[40:56] Speaker 5: Fletchenhindi as you. Guitell was there and Kevy Walters and
[41:01] Speaker 5: we're all sitting there watching it together. And it was
[41:04] Speaker 5: like every time we went to leave to go to
[41:06] Speaker 5: the studio to start the show, someoney go he come
[41:08] Speaker 5: back and have a look at this, like Reese's left,
[41:10] Speaker 5: like hit hit the crossbar, things like that. It was
[41:13] Speaker 5: like literally every couple of minutes there was something that happened.
[41:16] Speaker 5: And after it all finished, we had to talk about
[41:20] Speaker 5: the game. They showed the highlights of the game. There
[41:22] Speaker 5: were so many outrageous things that happened in that finals
[41:25] Speaker 5: twenty minutes.
[41:26] Speaker 1: It's just you forgot about them. It was just it
[41:29] Speaker 1: was the most incredible content. The final series last year.
[41:31] Speaker 1: I think it was the best Final series I ever had.
[41:34] Speaker 5: Like every game was sot particularly all the Broncos games,
[41:36] Speaker 5: but they were always down at halftime.
[41:38] Speaker 1: They come back and win.
[41:39] Speaker 5: But that game, that camp of Broncos one, I think
[41:42] Speaker 5: it was the Grand Final was great obviously, but I
[41:45] Speaker 5: mean I think that that game will actually go down
[41:48] Speaker 5: I know you don't want to hear it, but I
[41:49] Speaker 5: think it'll actually go down as probably the best outside
[41:52] Speaker 5: of a Grand Final, the best finals game of all time,
[41:54] Speaker 5: I would say.
[41:56] Speaker 1: I think it's definitely up there. I've seen some beauties.
[41:58] Speaker 5: I remember in nineteen In nineteen ninety four there was
[42:02] Speaker 5: a Grand foind And qualifier between can excuse me Canterbury
[42:06] Speaker 5: and camber Raiders now being extra time and Canterbary bit
[42:10] Speaker 5: of nineteen eighteen. There was another one in nineteen ninety
[42:13] Speaker 5: I remember Canberra again against Penrith when need I think
[42:17] Speaker 5: a double extra time.
[42:19] Speaker 1: This means to be Some of the greatest.
[42:20] Speaker 5: Games are those greend fill and qualifiers because I found
[42:26] Speaker 5: I was more nervous in the semi final games compared
[42:29] Speaker 5: to the Grand Final, because when you get to the
[42:31] Speaker 5: Grand Final, the week it's so much fun, you know
[42:33] Speaker 5: what I mean?
[42:33] Speaker 1: So much fun and it's finality.
[42:35] Speaker 5: Right, Whereas like I was always more nervous than the semis, thinking, oh,
[42:40] Speaker 5: I just want to want to be part of that
[42:42] Speaker 5: Grand Final week again.
[42:43] Speaker 2: But yeah, has there ever been a team to do
[42:47] Speaker 2: what the Bronx did to be behind in all three
[42:50] Speaker 2: semis to go and to win it? Because I think
[42:53] Speaker 2: they were down sixteen against us pen had them fourteen
[42:56] Speaker 2: nil at some.
[42:57] Speaker 1: Core and they stormed, had them I think something.
[43:01] Speaker 3: Yeah, by that much, nothing comes down on.
[43:03] Speaker 5: Nothing comes to mind, Jamal. That comes to mind, maybe
[43:06] Speaker 5: in one game here or there, but nothing, Yeah, nothing
[43:09] Speaker 5: comes to mind. I do remember there was a Grand
[43:12] Speaker 5: Final qualifier in nineteen ninety eight, which, of course HEINDI
[43:15] Speaker 5: hates his break breaks his heart was with twenty minutes
[43:18] Speaker 5: to go, paramatter of beating the Canny Bulldogs eighteen to
[43:22] Speaker 5: two and Canterbury come back eighteen all at full time.
[43:25] Speaker 5: If you have a look at what happens at full time.
[43:27] Speaker 5: At full time, Paul carries the parameter full back just
[43:30] Speaker 5: sort of runs and does a frivolous kick down the
[43:32] Speaker 5: field as the final player of the eighty minutes and
[43:35] Speaker 5: Craig Poler Mounder eight and all picks up the ball
[43:38] Speaker 5: fifty one meters out and goes bang, has a shot
[43:41] Speaker 5: of field gold and mate. Everyone celebrates. The video referee
[43:47] Speaker 5: has to have a look at it two or three
[43:48] Speaker 5: times to see if it goes over.
[43:49] Speaker 1: It was that close.
[43:51] Speaker 5: It actually skimmed like it didn't go over it, but
[43:54] Speaker 5: skimmedross the crossbar, and then Kenby went under win in
[43:58] Speaker 5: extra time.
[43:59] Speaker 1: That was an example.
[43:59] Speaker 5: But I've never seen a series with someone just every
[44:02] Speaker 5: single week just come from behind to that extent.
[44:05] Speaker 2: Because even when they played the Chicks the other night,
[44:07] Speaker 2: thirty after fifteen minutes, and I thought like they're going
[44:10] Speaker 2: to get blown away, but then they got within a
[44:12] Speaker 2: try and I was like that, surely they can't win. Yeah,
[44:15] Speaker 2: But like with Reese, for some reason, he goes better
[44:19] Speaker 2: when there's no senior haves, like he's the main character.
[44:23] Speaker 3: Hey, I'm going to kick it now, this is what
[44:25] Speaker 3: I'm going to do.
[44:25] Speaker 5: Like I don't think it's sort of like we're talking
[44:27] Speaker 5: about this the other night and I said, you can't
[44:29] Speaker 5: win a competition without Adam Reynolds like Reno there to
[44:32] Speaker 5: guide in the whole season. But very occasionally when you
[44:35] Speaker 5: pull Renaut out of it, it actually forces Reese to
[44:38] Speaker 5: the fold and they really have to got no choice
[44:40] Speaker 5: but to simplify their game and sort of take a
[44:42] Speaker 5: lot of risks.
[44:43] Speaker 1: What is it like, Jamal?
[44:46] Speaker 5: Like people watch and go, Okay, they can see he's
[44:49] Speaker 5: fast and everything, but can you give me just an
[44:51] Speaker 5: insight what it's like to defend him?
[44:53] Speaker 3: Yeah, it's pretty daunting.
[44:55] Speaker 2: I think someone with his skill set like elusive, like
[44:59] Speaker 2: he topped then speed, but he's footwork, he can cut
[45:02] Speaker 2: your inside, he can goose, he's strong with his little part,
[45:04] Speaker 2: but then he's got a nice left foot.
[45:06] Speaker 3: Kick cut out pass.
[45:07] Speaker 2: So he's one of those guys where you're kind of
[45:10] Speaker 2: like you generally don't know what he's gonna do, because
[45:12] Speaker 2: there's moments in games are easy, erratic and the players
[45:15] Speaker 2: don't come off. But then the next player he runs
[45:16] Speaker 2: the same thing and it all of a sudden comes
[45:18] Speaker 2: comes off. So you're very like on edge all the time.
[45:22] Speaker 2: But then you get some fullbacks where you're like, well,
[45:23] Speaker 2: he's not a great passer. I'm just going to tell
[45:25] Speaker 2: my cningy go put pressure on him and try and
[45:28] Speaker 2: stop him before he gets the ball type thing, whereas yeah,
[45:31] Speaker 2: he's just one of those players.
[45:32] Speaker 3: It's just so full of.
[45:34] Speaker 5: Talents, and you can come up against players sometimes Jamal,
[45:37] Speaker 5: and it's like all we need to do is like you,
[45:40] Speaker 5: it might be like a center on and he's just
[45:42] Speaker 5: got a really strong left hand, I mean left end
[45:45] Speaker 5: or like a big right foot step and you go,
[45:46] Speaker 5: we just need to nullify that.
[45:48] Speaker 1: You can focus on one thing. But like Reees, he's
[45:51] Speaker 1: speed out the back of shape. Sometimes you want to go.
[45:54] Speaker 5: You want to go and tell your center and winger
[45:55] Speaker 5: just go and jam and shut it down. But he's
[45:58] Speaker 5: got good hands. He can just quick hands and hit
[45:59] Speaker 5: the and he's got a nice little kick. So and
[46:02] Speaker 5: he's strong too, like you said, like he's it's easier
[46:04] Speaker 5: said to go and jam and shut it down. When
[46:06] Speaker 5: he's a little pocket rocker and he's powerful, so he
[46:08] Speaker 5: can sort of evade. There is so many different weapons
[46:11] Speaker 5: that he has, so it is so hard.
[46:13] Speaker 2: To shame he's someone that evades when the balls still
[46:15] Speaker 2: in the air, like you'd see some centers try to
[46:18] Speaker 2: go out and get him and then all of a
[46:19] Speaker 2: sudden the ball still in there and you'll go towards
[46:21] Speaker 2: it or you'll go past.
[46:22] Speaker 3: It and they miss him off the ball. Yeah, it's
[46:26] Speaker 3: very hard for like, I couldn't do that stuff.
[46:29] Speaker 1: What about you?
[46:31] Speaker 5: Okay, Sueves got your other club and Seeves was a
[46:34] Speaker 5: big supporter of yours. But as is the way we
[46:36] Speaker 5: talk about professional sport all the time, it's the results driven.
[46:39] Speaker 5: If you're half back, you're not you're not winning, you
[46:41] Speaker 5: get dropped. And if your coach that's not winning, unfortunately
[46:44] Speaker 5: you get sacked. Kieran Forren comes in and.
[46:49] Speaker 1: What's he like as a coach. Can you just give
[46:52] Speaker 1: us some insight?
[46:53] Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I love the fact that he's at the club.
[46:55] Speaker 2: I remember going to the Delim Awards last year he
[46:57] Speaker 2: was there and I was actually going to go over
[46:59] Speaker 2: to him. I'd love for you to come and mental
[47:02] Speaker 2: me at Manly because I didn't know what he was
[47:03] Speaker 2: going to do, and then lucky enough he was at
[47:06] Speaker 2: the club. But I think first and foremost he's a
[47:08] Speaker 2: genuine great human, like he understands rugby league and the
[47:12] Speaker 2: pressures we're in. But then he can also just have
[47:14] Speaker 2: a chat about whatever on the side, which I think
[47:16] Speaker 2: with coaching you've got to have personal relationships with everyone.
[47:19] Speaker 2: It's not all footy. It's kind of like what do
[47:21] Speaker 2: you do for fine, what are you doing aside you
[47:23] Speaker 2: have kids whatever else? So he's got that relationship building.
[47:27] Speaker 2: But then also like if you're talking about mainly DNA,
[47:29] Speaker 2: like he's tough as nails. He's been at the club
[47:33] Speaker 2: through good times and bad times. He's want to camp
[47:35] Speaker 2: and all his knowledge. I think he just gets what
[47:39] Speaker 2: it takes to get through a week of you know,
[47:41] Speaker 2: are we watching too much video? We're not doing enough?
[47:44] Speaker 3: He knows what to say, how to say it, not
[47:46] Speaker 3: overloadness with information. I think he with him as coach,
[47:51] Speaker 3: he just understands what we need to get to.
[47:54] Speaker 1: Game day and a man managing aspect.
[47:56] Speaker 2: Yeah, and then just he's messaging on game day like
[47:59] Speaker 2: if you're not revd up ready to play after what
[48:01] Speaker 2: he says to you and his little final piece like
[48:04] Speaker 2: it's it's actually like going out there ready to play,
[48:07] Speaker 2: Like Jake and Tomer just got their eyes in the
[48:08] Speaker 2: back of their role when they're just like loving it.
[48:10] Speaker 1: Yeah.
[48:10] Speaker 2: Yeah, And like Jake is an emotional person, so I
[48:12] Speaker 2: can only imagine like he's just that excited to go
[48:15] Speaker 2: out there and rip in and sometimes that's all you
[48:17] Speaker 2: need right, like sometimes you just need to be able
[48:19] Speaker 2: to connect with the players, say what I need to say?
[48:22] Speaker 2: And do you just just go out and back yourself?
[48:24] Speaker 2: And I think he's done that.
[48:26] Speaker 5: How how has that impression been? Like it you played
[48:28] Speaker 5: your schoolboys with Jakie, but seeing him at the NRL level,
[48:32] Speaker 5: seeing what he's like, what a stress head he is
[48:34] Speaker 5: in the sheds before the game?
[48:35] Speaker 4: Is it?
[48:36] Speaker 1: Did it surprise you the first time you played with him? Yeah?
[48:38] Speaker 3: It makes me anxious seeing him even at training. Do
[48:40] Speaker 3: you have a dog upstairs?
[48:41] Speaker 1: Yeah?
[48:42] Speaker 3: He does a dog play up? You do you smack
[48:45] Speaker 3: your dog?
[48:46] Speaker 2: Like I'm not like you know when your dog plays
[48:49] Speaker 2: up and they're out the back, they're petrified. They know
[48:51] Speaker 2: they're in like a bit of trouble. It's like Jakie
[48:53] Speaker 2: at training every day like he's just like I don't
[48:55] Speaker 2: know what the day is and I'm sitting there going, mate,
[48:58] Speaker 2: you played two hundred and fifty games, like, man, you
[49:03] Speaker 2: snap blokes and half you played for your country, your captain,
[49:06] Speaker 2: your state.
[49:07] Speaker 3: Like why you're so anxious?
[49:08] Speaker 2: But that's just him So like when I see him,
[49:11] Speaker 2: geez anxious And he's always in training super early and
[49:14] Speaker 2: Ben's not much better than him, but just like the
[49:18] Speaker 2: passion and love and care that he has for the club. Like,
[49:20] Speaker 2: if you're not going to follow someone like him, like
[49:23] Speaker 2: you're kidding yourself. Being a football that's someone you want,
[49:26] Speaker 2: Like you want someone that's super caring about his playing group,
[49:29] Speaker 2: passionate about the club, but leads.
[49:31] Speaker 3: From the front with intensity.
[49:32] Speaker 5: Like what was your first impression of the club when
[49:34] Speaker 5: you came to because, like Dad was saying, obviously like
[49:37] Speaker 5: sieves and the CEO after you've signed there, like it
[49:40] Speaker 5: was the club was just going through all this stuff.
[49:42] Speaker 5: But your first impressions when you get in their preseason
[49:45] Speaker 5: after being the Raiders and the Titans, what was mainly.
[49:47] Speaker 2: Like it was weird because there was a lot of
[49:49] Speaker 2: external noise about the club, saying it's in turmoil and
[49:51] Speaker 2: all this, But when I first ad preseason, I was like,
[49:54] Speaker 2: all great, dude, they're super happy, they're willing to work hard,
[49:57] Speaker 2: and they love hanging out with each other. I was
[49:58] Speaker 2: kind of like I was a little bit confused about
[50:00] Speaker 2: all the outside noise compared to.
[50:02] Speaker 3: Inside manly is always in Like for me, it was
[50:08] Speaker 3: like I just couldn't connect the two. And then obviously
[50:13] Speaker 3: like we won't perform.
[50:14] Speaker 2: Well, then all that happens and then it's all of
[50:16] Speaker 2: a sudden, like the media one of the to get
[50:20] Speaker 2: after Sieves. Now Fozz is in, which is what I
[50:22] Speaker 2: think everyone's wanted, like an X manly player, and all
[50:24] Speaker 2: of a sudden that external bubbles popped, and then amongst
[50:27] Speaker 2: the playing group you can just be like, oh, like pressure, Yeah,
[50:30] Speaker 2: there's none of that anymore. So but yeah, great, great
[50:34] Speaker 2: bunch of people. Like I wouldn't have thought all that
[50:36] Speaker 2: stuff behind doors was happening before I came.
[50:39] Speaker 5: Three years Yeah, what do you think, Jamal? Like post
[50:43] Speaker 5: football is a long way off? What do you what
[50:45] Speaker 5: are your plans?
[50:46] Speaker 1: What do you think?
[50:46] Speaker 5: Because I mean, I don't put words in your mouth,
[50:50] Speaker 5: but you just take your boat Foes there Now. I
[50:52] Speaker 5: think what makes Foz and He's going to make Foes
[50:55] Speaker 5: an even better coach is he's lived a life. He's
[51:00] Speaker 5: lived a life, He's gone through hell at times in
[51:02] Speaker 5: his life. He has been in numerous ways right, and
[51:06] Speaker 5: he's gone through anguish personally on the field, personally off
[51:11] Speaker 5: the field. All those things. It gives him empathy. He
[51:14] Speaker 5: gets understanding of people, and he appreciates when good things happen.
[51:18] Speaker 5: Similar thing with Todd Carney. I tell people all the time, mate,
[51:21] Speaker 5: people last Todd Carney is up there coaching at the
[51:23] Speaker 5: Pathways and the mam is coaching in Kuybrow and he's
[51:26] Speaker 5: coaching on the Pathways. The gold coach times I've really
[51:28] Speaker 5: seen a better coach. He is so good the way
[51:31] Speaker 5: he talks to the kids everything.
[51:33] Speaker 1: They love him.
[51:33] Speaker 5: He's got empathy to kids and he knows him inside
[51:35] Speaker 5: out because he's lived a life. You just spoke about yourself.
[51:38] Speaker 5: A couple of things I think are really important. You're
[51:41] Speaker 5: a a bloomer and the fact that you know what
[51:44] Speaker 5: you've been actually you know what was a turning point
[51:49] Speaker 5: in your career and what you had to focus on.
[51:50] Speaker 5: You said you gave He gave you a purpose, you
[51:52] Speaker 5: gave your identity. Just pushed the team around the park.
[51:55] Speaker 5: I'll to do the stuff with the defense and look
[51:58] Speaker 5: after your kicking. And now the thing is, mate, working
[52:01] Speaker 5: with those kids, working with those kids, you know, under
[52:03] Speaker 5: terrible circumstances. In doing that, all of those things, mate.
[52:08] Speaker 6: Have you have?
[52:10] Speaker 1: You just on the perfect, perfect pathway to being a
[52:12] Speaker 1: top line coach. What do you think you do? You
[52:15] Speaker 1: see a future there. Love that.
[52:16] Speaker 2: Yeah, I think I do love giving back, And I
[52:18] Speaker 2: think being a youth worker it's a it's a feeling
[52:22] Speaker 2: that you get from the job. It's not going to
[52:24] Speaker 2: work to get a paycheck, because like you can get
[52:27] Speaker 2: any type of job that's you're going to get paid for,
[52:29] Speaker 2: but it's the feeling that you get when you help
[52:31] Speaker 2: someone in need. And I think coaching is probably something similar,
[52:35] Speaker 2: like if I get a young Maddie John's and I'm
[52:38] Speaker 2: an under eight Aen's coach, or say perfect situation Jack
[52:41] Speaker 2: and the Boys coaching nineties, like you get to have
[52:44] Speaker 2: a moment to hopefully give one or two players something
[52:48] Speaker 2: that they can take moving forward and if they go
[52:50] Speaker 2: into an NRL system then go on to play like
[52:53] Speaker 2: you've been a part of that journey. That's a feeling.
[52:56] Speaker 2: So I think, like I love trying to get that
[52:58] Speaker 2: feeling because there's not many things in life that probably
[53:01] Speaker 2: give you that, and I think coaching and youth work do.
[53:04] Speaker 2: So I think, yeah, some type of coaching to give
[53:07] Speaker 2: back would would be awesome. But a lot of people
[53:09] Speaker 2: tell me I'll be good in the media because I
[53:11] Speaker 2: talk a lot too.
[53:14] Speaker 1: Why didn't you do this I was made both. I
[53:17] Speaker 1: haven't got long left.
[53:20] Speaker 5: Late night with Jamal. I'll get my sister to come
[53:23] Speaker 5: along and I'll give you a delicious.
[53:24] Speaker 1: Late late night big love.
[53:30] Speaker 5: Actually, can we ask you a question because that's going
[53:32] Speaker 5: to come up with a little bit of a segment
[53:33] Speaker 5: that he hasn't He hasn't usually got through that. Have
[53:36] Speaker 5: you always done that?
[53:36] Speaker 1: Bottle? We've got to record another potty after this as well.
[53:42] Speaker 1: Don't worry about it's all good. I've got to go
[53:45] Speaker 1: on radio shortly ten minutes as well.
[53:49] Speaker 3: That makes me proud because it must be good.
[53:51] Speaker 1: It's delicious. He's just a few.
[53:54] Speaker 5: He got so drunk one day and we did the
[53:57] Speaker 5: potty like so drunk, and then had to fight with
[54:00] Speaker 5: Jack was playing at the Nights of the Times. We
[54:01] Speaker 5: did have a zoom, so Jack just like fifty at
[54:04] Speaker 5: right at the end of the party. Sometimes you get
[54:05] Speaker 5: right at the end of the party, is like, all right,
[54:07] Speaker 5: we're almost done. We're on the home stretch. Jack abused
[54:09] Speaker 5: him left the zoom, so we had to and then
[54:12] Speaker 5: we had to re record the whole thing because the producer,
[54:15] Speaker 5: hang on.
[54:15] Speaker 6: Hang on, hang on, I got I've got some support
[54:17] Speaker 6: though Gavin our producer, who's then who was the nicest
[54:20] Speaker 6: guy in the world. You'll never say a negative thing,
[54:22] Speaker 6: I said, Gav, be honest with me. Was this the
[54:24] Speaker 6: worst podcast we've ever done? And he went, it could
[54:27] Speaker 6: be better?
[54:29] Speaker 1: Guys, I can't use any of this.
[54:32] Speaker 3: It was very tough.
[54:34] Speaker 1: If you could go on one reality show, what would
[54:36] Speaker 1: be I don't.
[54:38] Speaker 3: To be honest.
[54:39] Speaker 2: Our TV doesn't hook up to normal TV at home
[54:42] Speaker 2: for some reason. We just can't find channels.
[54:44] Speaker 3: Really, yeah, it's always Foxtel, go on Netflix and stuff.
[54:47] Speaker 3: But reality show, I don't know.
[54:51] Speaker 1: We've got a family, so come.
[54:53] Speaker 2: You married at first? I'd be embarrassing, though, on someone
[54:57] Speaker 2: that I reckon. I reckon like Survivor or something look different,
[55:03] Speaker 2: like a couple of different challenges.
[55:05] Speaker 1: Or that'd be a fun one with the stars. You're
[55:07] Speaker 1: a good football No I can't.
[55:08] Speaker 3: I only dark did in the world that cannot dance
[55:10] Speaker 3: something No good for that?
[55:13] Speaker 1: The wrong music?
[55:15] Speaker 5: All right, don't to explain your segment, please, So he
[55:18] Speaker 5: does when he he busts this out every now and then.
[55:20] Speaker 5: So he's going to go through some of the players
[55:22] Speaker 5: that you've played with, and it's like a King of
[55:24] Speaker 5: the ring right, and he'll give you two and you
[55:27] Speaker 5: go with them until there's only two left and you
[55:29] Speaker 5: pick the winner of it.
[55:30] Speaker 1: And it's the players that you play. It's the best
[55:32] Speaker 1: player you've ever played with.
[55:33] Speaker 3: Someone talking skill wise or all together, all together.
[55:37] Speaker 1: Okay, however you want to interpret it? Yeah, you know, hello, mate,
[55:45] Speaker 1: who's that.
[55:49] Speaker 2: You have?
[55:49] Speaker 1: But three thirty isn't it? Oh? Three twenty okay? Right now?
[55:56] Speaker 1: Can you just give me five minutes?
[55:59] Speaker 4: Right?
[56:00] Speaker 1: That's five you have out three twenty three. See if Jamal.
[56:08] Speaker 3: He's never gonna get sacked, he'll never get sacked.
[56:11] Speaker 5: Okay, does to bring back reg So here we go
[56:15] Speaker 5: exactly Jared Wallace or for a Waker uh Mo surprises
[56:22] Speaker 5: the for a Waker A j Brinson, brim or Xavier Savage.
[56:29] Speaker 5: Oh I think, by the way, and let you know
[56:35] Speaker 5: left or mainly players out of this to be fair, okay,
[56:39] Speaker 5: Brim or Starling, Tommy Starling.
[56:41] Speaker 2: Oh see this is hard, it is And you know
[56:46] Speaker 2: Staralo is going to listen to this, and I'm going
[56:49] Speaker 2: to go Tommy because he's just tough and tenacious and
[56:52] Speaker 2: we'll do anything.
[56:53] Speaker 1: Okay, Tommy or Zach Hosky, I.
[56:58] Speaker 3: Reckon You's one of my favorite team mates.
[57:00] Speaker 1: I'll play with.
[57:00] Speaker 3: I'm gonna go Zach.
[57:02] Speaker 1: Okay, Zach Hoski, Jordan Rapper.
[57:05] Speaker 5: Oh Jesus, Jesus, it's a tough segment in it, Oh,
[57:11] Speaker 5: because you love everyone. Yeah, I'm gonna go Raps Okay,
[57:17] Speaker 5: Raps or Reuben Cottax played with him the All Star Team.
[57:21] Speaker 1: I'll go Raps, Raps.
[57:22] Speaker 3: Or Ko Weeks, jes Jesus Christ.
[57:28] Speaker 1: He can't help me.
[57:29] Speaker 3: I'm gonna go.
[57:30] Speaker 5: Raps Okay, Wraps, Corey Horse for a big red Raps, Rap, Raps,
[57:35] Speaker 5: Joe Erah, Raps, Raps, Jack whiteon.
[57:39] Speaker 3: O Jesus Christ, Oh Jesus, I'll go Jacko.
[57:47] Speaker 5: Jack White and hammer Hammer Sir Jack White, Okay, Jack
[57:51] Speaker 5: White and Cody Walker.
[57:54] Speaker 3: Holy Jesus, this is hard day. He played some excellent players,
[57:59] Speaker 3: and I'll go Jack.
[58:00] Speaker 5: Cody doesn't Okay, Jack or Josh.
[58:07] Speaker 1: Papa.
[58:09] Speaker 5: I'm going to Big Papa Papa or Nico Hines, Papa Papa,
[58:14] Speaker 5: Joe Tarpani, Big Papa Papa, Hudson Young.
[58:20] Speaker 3: I'll go I'm sticking with Papa Okay.
[58:22] Speaker 5: The final one and boys, as I say this, Jamal,
[58:25] Speaker 5: I'm going to bid you fair well, because I'm running
[58:27] Speaker 5: like for radio and.
[58:28] Speaker 1: I don't lose my job. You won't Big Papa or
[58:32] Speaker 1: La troll Mitchell.
[58:34] Speaker 3: Oh that's I'm sticking with Big.
[58:42] Speaker 1: Thanks.
[58:43] Speaker 3: Thanks mate, love it mate, Thanks Jamal.
[58:45] Speaker 1: Always finish off. Thank you for the no we're done, but.
[58:49] Speaker 4: Finish coop, finish it off.
[58:53] Speaker 1: What is left is to finish off? We just said goodbye, well.
[58:56] Speaker 6: Jam Jamal wants to have a future in media. Show
[58:59] Speaker 6: him how you exit up podcast?
[59:00] Speaker 1: Oh yeah, you don't want to do you want to
[59:02] Speaker 1: round off the party for the day.
[59:03] Speaker 3: I've got no idea how to do it or what
[59:05] Speaker 3: to do. Good learning, curve.
[59:07] Speaker 5: Straight down there and just go. Thanks for listening to
[59:09] Speaker 5: the Backstage podcast like follow and subscribe to that for me.
[59:15] Speaker 5: Thanks for listening to the backstage podcast like follow and subscribe.
[59:18] Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to backstage podcasts like subscribe. This
[59:25] Speaker 3: is no good for me, mate, I need a bit
[59:26] Speaker 3: of training.
[59:27] Speaker 1: Go to coaching, mate,

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