The ins and outs of the Warriors
Johnson signs on for two more years It was tough telling the boys - Matulino
Shaun Johnson thought long and hard about leaving the Warriors, but could not shake a crucial feeling.
‘‘The one thing that stood out was not being satisfied if I left at this point,’’ the NRL club’s star halfback said after confirming he had signed a two-year contract extension yesterday, ahead of the match against the Roosters in Auckland tomorrow.
‘‘The thought of winning elsewhere doesn’t sit right at the moment, the thought of winning here means the world to me and is what I’m striving to do.
‘‘I’m surrounded by people at this club that share the same passion and want to see this club succeed.’’
Into his seventh season with the Auckland club, for whom he made his NRL debut, Johnson had been pondering his future for several months. The chance to acquire a player of his talents attracted the interest of several other clubs.
The 29-year-old admitted that meant it had been ‘‘a bit of a journey’’ to put pen to paper on a new deal. It was a journey that included some ‘‘very open and honest conversations’’ with the Warriors and managing director Jim Doyle.
With all the factors weighed up and a decision finally made, Johnson was confident he had made the right call, for the right period of time.
‘‘[Two years] is enough time to really see where the club is heading,’’ he said.
‘‘We have a new coaching staff this year, they would have found their feet by then and moulded the club into what they want. I’ll be 29 by the time this contract is up, that’s a good point for me as well to re-evaluate.’’
When the time comes to do that, Johnson hopes it will result in the same decision.
While he wouldn’t be drawn on whether he would finish his career in Auckland, the fleet-footed No 7 said he had committed to help the club achieve success and saw no reason why that would last for only two more seasons.
Johnson also spoke highly of head coach Stephen Kearney and the plans head he had put in place.
The feeling was mutual, Kearney expressing his pleasure at securing the services of player thought by many to be key to the club’s aspirations.
‘‘He’s pretty important to us ... I’m really pleased he has committed to club and I’m looking forward to working with him [more],’’ he Until an emotional Stephen Kearney all-but did it for him, Ben Matulino had planned to be the one to break the news to his Warriors teammates.
On Tuesday night, following the Warriors’ 20-14 loss to the Storm in Melbourne, it was confirmed Matulino would be leaving the club at the end of the 2017 season.
After 10 seasons with the Auckland NRL franchise, the 28-year-old prop will join Wests Tigers on a three-year deal.
The news was revealed to Matulino’s team-mates in the changing sheds after the match against the Storm, although not in the fashion the player himself had in mind.
‘‘I almost told them,’’ the lofty front rower out of Wellington said yesterday.
‘‘After our coach gave the team talk, he said ‘Ben has got an announcement to make’. But he got pretty emotional, he couldn’t find the words to say anything so he pretty much did it for me.
‘‘It was pretty tough telling the boys, [though], being at the club for 10 years and a club I really like.’’
Given that last statement, it may seem odd he has decided to leave at all.
A two-time Warriors player of
said. ‘‘He had to work through a few things and wanted to see where the club was heading.
‘‘I’ve laid the plan out to everyone on how we want to build this club, so he was well aware of that.’’
Whether Johnson’s halves partner Kieran Foran, who is being linked with moves back to Sydney, also fits into that bracket after this year remains to be seen.
Johnson reiterated the team’s desire to see Foran stay, and their respect for whatever decision he eventually made.
But he also made it clear that, and his own contract situation, had not been his focus. the year, the second of those in 2015, Matulino justifiably came into last season rated as one of the best props in the game.
He freely admits what followed throughout 2016 ‘‘wasn’t up to par’’, while a frustrating battle with injury has followed.
Matulino was forced to pull out of the Kiwis’ end-of-year tour to Australia and England before injuring his knee in January, the subsequent surgery producing an infection which has kept him out of action until Tuesday’s clash with Melbourne.
It was during that extended period on the sidelines when he decided it was time to make a shift from the Warriors.
‘‘I had a lot of time to think about next year and if I was going to stay or not, and I was pretty open about moving on if needed to,’’ Matulino said.
‘‘I thought about how I went last year and it wasn’t up to par. I thought I needed a fresh start and decided that when the season kicked off, then Ivan [Cleary] got the job at the Tigers and it fell into place quite nicely.’’
Matulino played under Cleary for four seasons when the latter was in charge at the Warriors, the club reaching its only grand final in 2011 before he departed to the Panthers.
Matulino felt Cleary would challenge him in positive ways.
He felt he had done a good job of prioritising his on-field performance, despite the team’s three win and five loss start to their 2017 campaign.
‘‘That was one of the things I was wary about ... but I’ve felt really good with my footy, I haven’t started a season as well as I have this year.
‘‘I’ve just enjoyed every minute out on the field. This group is really close and I love being round the boys.’’
That’s something he can look forward to more of.
For the next two-and-a-half years at least.