Good preparation key to more good performances

After waiting so long for the season to start, it’s amazing how quickly things get back to routine.

We’ve had a lighter training load this week, since it was the first game and we had an eight-day turnaround, but there is a lot that goes into the preparation for the next match.

It all starts straight after the previous game. There’s a debrief in the changing rooms, looking at what was good and what needs to be better, before Mooks (coach Stephen Kearney) gives his opinion.

The next morning, we have recovery and a team video, with an open forum after that, where we discuss the match, and the coaches give us their thoughts.

It’s not always pretty but we have to be accountable; you can’t shy away from those things and need to take the good with the bad. We made a pact last year not to sugar coat anything with our feedback and that is one of our strengths now.

Then before our first field session, we have a spine meeting, with our attack coaches Todd Payten and Stacey Jones, to pick apart our last game and some of the decisions.

We were pretty satisfied with last Saturday — I didn’t see that score coming against the Bulldogs — but there are always things to improve.

Then we look forward, analysing how the upcoming opposition defends, and come up with a game plan, looking at their traits and defensive systems.

We go through some clips with the whole team, before the field session, where the ISP team will try to replicate what the opposition are going to do defensively to test us out.

The next day follows a similar pattern, but on the defensive side of things.

During the week, other team units will meet — the middles, and each edge — with a lot of specialised input from the coaching group.

But it’s vital; as Stephen Kearney always reminds us, good preparation equals good performance.

Last week’s performance was very satisfying. Aside from the 40-6 scoreline, I was really happy some of the foundations we laid pre-season, and things we worked really hard at, we were able to put into place when it mattered.

We also really appreciated the great turnout at Mt Smart, and we could feel the emotion in the air, after the tragic events in Christchurch the day before.

We just wanted to perform for our fans and give people around the country something to smile about.

The Tigers are always tough, especially at a traditional home venue such as Campbelltown. But it’s a nice ground and a great place to play.

Our recent record there is not flash but it’s not something we have spoken about.

This team doesn’t dwell on that kind of history, as we showed last year. We won in Perth, ended long droughts in Townsville and Kogarah and got home in Canberra, where the Warriors had traditionally struggled.

It’s all about mindset, and that is something this group has embraced during the past 18 months or so.