Players feel heat of coach’s blast
Jesse Bromwich ranks Michael Maguire’s livid post-match spray last weekend as ‘‘right up there in the top two’’.
The Kiwis captain said the players didn’t disagree with Maguire’s blast after their underwhelming 24-18 World Cup quarterfinal win over Fiji last weekend.
‘‘I think a lot of the boys agreed,’’ Bromwich said ahead of the semifinal against Australia on Saturday morning (NZ time).
‘‘The message I got out of it was the passion for this stage of the tournament and that it wasn’t a very up to par performance.
‘‘He came around and had a one-onone with everyone before he started, and we had a fair idea it was going to be a bit of a touch-up.’’
Bromwich said ‘‘the boys handled it really well’’ and now ‘‘know what’s acceptable and what’s not.’’
Maguire has a reputation for being forthright in his views, and Bromwich had no issue with the no-holds-barred approach.
‘‘He’s a real passionate sort of coach and he was really fired up after the game, and it was good to see.
‘‘As a team we felt it was pretty unacceptable the way we started the game.
‘‘To have a coach come in and care about the jersey that much ... the pride in the jumper was really good.’’
Bromwich said the Kiwis’ training session was ‘‘really sharp off the back of intense meetings’’.
The Kiwis captain admitted he was ‘‘a bit disappointed’’ in his own game against Fiji and said his job against Australia would be to give the pack a good platform.
‘‘Those other boys have been playing really good footy at their clubs – Fish [James Fisher-Harris] has been carrying Penrith for a while and Joey Tapine’s been really good. thought Nelson [AsofaSolomona] on the weekend was
one of our best forwards, he was really damaging with the footy.’’
Bromwich rated Fisher-Harris the Kiwis’ most consistent performer at the World Cup.
‘‘I’ve seen him come to this squad as a young, raw kid from up north that was really quiet, and didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes. He’s totally the opposite [now], trying to get into anything and really stamping his authority on the game and our team.’’
Bromwich, 33, has now played 33 tests, many of them alongside younger brother Kenny, with whom he’s shared NRL grand final wins at the Melbourne Storm.
The two are again set to be in the Kiwis starting pack against the
Kangaroos. Imaging themselves playing in a World Cup semifinal would have ‘‘felt like it was just a dream’’ in their boyhood backyard.
‘‘I feel really lucky to have gone out and done a lot of these things, but to do it next to your brother, someone you grew up with the whole time . . .
‘‘We’re from a very grounded family, strong Kiwis, and to put the black jersey on together just means so much, not only to us, but to our families.
‘‘Both of us have got families of our own now, and we’re close. These are things we’ll talk about when we’re 40, 50 years old and talking rubbish to our children.’’