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Must admit I wasn't convinced about his return but so far he has shown great form on both attack and D.Not going to lie I was happy but not super excited when his return was announced. I Honestly believed his legacy might have been tarnished by the end of this stint but if the trials are anything to go by and he still has some room to improve from getting accustomed to the nrl rigours this might just be his best shift yet. Fanatic guy to have around especially as we start investing into the youth and an even better player I wouldn't confidently name many if any others to take a couple years off and come back in this form.
Was raised at the time!My question is why did they re-sign Pompey. Or were they not sure about RTS at centre or are they going to make Pompey edge forward.
I'd like to preface this by saying I think Pompey is shit.My question is why did they re-sign Pompey. Or were they not sure about RTS at centre or are they going to make Pompey edge forward.
How many genuine centres do we have?My question is why did they re-sign Pompey. Or were they not sure about RTS at centre or are they going to make Pompey edge forward.
Depth. Injuries are inevitable, we’re lucky to have players who can slot right in and do the jobMy question is why did they re-sign Pompey. Or were they not sure about RTS at centre or are they going to make Pompey edge forward.
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is back in his happy place but admits his exit from the Warriors in 2021 doesn’t sit comfortably with him.
The 30-year-old left the club in July of that year, while the team was stuck in Australia because of the Covid pandemic.
He had already decided to try his hand at rugby union the following season, to play for the Blues. But a brief reopening of the trans-Tasman travel bubble gave Tuivasa-Sheck the opportunity to return home to be with his family and fast-track his rugby career by playing for Auckland in the NPC.
Had he stayed, there were no guarantees he’d be back in New Zealand for Christmas.
The Warriors’ chances of making the top eight were already remote by that stage, but as the club’s captain, someone his team-mates looked up to, and the person who had shown tremendous leadership through those incredibly tough times, it wasn’t easy for him to fly home and leave his comrades still stranded in Australia.
While playing rugby, he still closely followed the Warriors through another arduous and stressful season in 2022, but then also saw them experience a great 2023 campaign.
“I was happy for everyone at the club. Not just the players, but for everyone,” Tuivasa-Sheck said.
“For 2020 and 2021, we were over in Australia and it was tough times.
“We were just turning up to play. I don’t think the boys wanted to play, but we turned up and had to be there, just so our families were being fed.
“To come back [to New Zealand] and see the whole country behind the team (last year) and for them to play well and have smiles on their faces, that was good to see.
“I was so happy for them and in a way, seeing them succeed like that made me want to come back and try to add to them.
“I didn’t enjoy the way I left. I didn’t finish my season in 2021 with them, so I’m glad I’m back now.”
Warriors CEO Cameron George believes Tuivasa-Sheck shouldn’t feel bad about leaving the club how he did.
Warriors CEO Cameron George says it wasn’t an easy decision for Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to return to New Zealand during the 2021 season.
“It was unique, it was devastating circumstances for the club, being stuck in Australia and he was separated from his family,” George said.
“He led like a true leader through that period in really difficult circumstances. So when he decided he needed to get home to his family, I fully endorsed it.
“He had sacrificed a lot and it was his time to reconnect with his family.”
Tuivasa-Sheck and George had a number of conversations in the lead-up to his decision to head home and George said it was clear it wasn’t an easy call for him to make.
“You could see it weighed on him heavily that he was leaving his mates and role at the footy club,” he said.
“When he left, we didn’t know what the future held for us, so it was a rush to get through customs before they shut the border again.
“He was devastated to do it, but it was the right thing for him to do at that time and he had my support 100%.”
Rugby didn’t work out for Tuivasa-Sheck the way he hoped and he’s back at the club which means so much to him. While there are some familiar faces still at the Warriors, a lot has changed.
"It’s different,” he said.
“This is a place where I grew up a lot, I was captain of the side, but I’m a new guy as well. So I’m coming in and trying to find that balance.
“Webby (Warriors coach Andrew Webster) told me to try to be the young boy and learn, listen to what we’ve got, learn the new system, and I love that part.
“At the same time, I see things as a leader and want to step in, but I’m like ‘no, leave it, let them learn.’
“So it’s trying to find that balance of being a young kid, but also leading in a way that I can help out in other ways as well.”
There were plenty of question marks about Tuivasa-Sheck going into this season. He hadn’t lit up the rugby world as hoped and was shifting to the new position of centre at the Warriors.
Those doubts disappeared in the trial game against Wests Tigers in Christchurch a couple of weeks ago when he ran the ball for 196 metres, had eight tackle breaks, three offloads and was huge on defence.
“It’s been all right to test the lungs out again,” he said, modestly.
“My main thing was my match fitness, to see if I could keep up with the game because I want to come in and keep up with the speed, I still want to give something to this team.
“That first game was a test of the system that the coaches created,” he added.
“I believed in it and once in the game, it started to work out and it gave me a lot of confidence, that the product that these guys have created works.
“Now, I’ve got to keep turning up and doing my role. It gave me a lot of confidence going into that last trial and with the bigger boys coming back, it helped.”
For the Dolphins trial, Tuivasa-Sheck spent the second half playing at fullback, although his main position this year will be centre. It means Warriors fans will see him play differently this year, but he also feels he needs to continue to evolve as a player.
“I’ve got to,” he said. “The game is changing, it’s a lot quicker and I’m not playing fullback, so I won’t take so many carries.
“I’ve got to firstly learn and stick to our systems here and the way Andrew wants me to play.
“It’s a second opportunity for me to chase the ultimate here at the Warriors,” he added.
“I’m an 09 boy, from South Auckland, so to do it for the city would be awesome.”
When?RTS and JTS younger brother is playing RU for Ponsonby reserves
Do we think webby needs to consider sheck on the wing?