Lolohea can bounce back against Penrith
Recalled Warriors fullback Tuimoala Lolohea is determined to prove he belongs in the starting side when the Panthers come to Mt Smart on Saturday.
The talented 21-year-old has been the subject of much speculation after being dropped to the bench in three of his side’s last four matches and having his playing time significantly reduced.
Lolohea was told to work on some defensive aspects of his game by Andrew McFadden, which the coach is satisfied he has addressed.
And after impressing in a 32-minute cameo during last week’s golden point defeat in Canberra, the Marist junior has reclaimed the No 1 jersey from David Fusitu’a, who has moved to the centres in place of Blake Ayshford.
While disappointed with his demotion, Lolohea said he understood McFadden’s decision and is raring to showcase his improvements in what shapes as a crucial game for the Warriors’ finals hopes.
‘‘I guess it probably hasn’t been the best couple of weeks for me,’’ Lolohea said. ‘‘I’ve had a lot of conversations with ‘Cappy’ [McFadden] throughout the last three weeks, there was a lot of stuff in the media saying there’s a lot of clubs (interested in me) but I’m pretty happy here.’’
Lolohea was first dropped to the bench in last month’s defeat to the Sharks. He then started on the wing against the Titans before playing just two minutes of the Warriors’ extra-time defeat to Manly in Perth two weeks ago.
That sparked the interest of several rival NRL clubs who reached out to his manager, but Lolohea reiterated his desire to remain in Auckland. ‘‘ He mentioned that there’s people around if I’m not happy and I just told him the truth. I’m happy here, this is home for me at the moment and this is where I want to spend the rest of my footy career.’’