LAS VEGAS — Moments before the performance for a moment Two of the four National Rugby League teams participating in Saturday’s match arrived at Allegiant Stadium for the first time on Friday.
The Manly Sea Eagles were the first to arrive in the morning for what was dubbed the ‘Captain’s Run’, the final pre-match walk-through training session by the home club.
In this case, Manly, who will play South Sydney Rabbitohs in the opening game, will be the home team, and Sydney Roosters, who will play Brisbane Broncos in the nightcap, will also be the home team.
Manly players roamed the same field where the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers to win the Super Bowl, gazing in awe at the skyscrapers and posing for photos and selfies. looked like a New York tourist brandishing a cell phone.
The Roosters had to do it this afternoon.
Saturday’s game will be the first taste of Allegiant Stadium for the “road” teams, the Rabbitohs and Broncos.
For those watching the game on TV, streaming or at Allegiant Stadium, where league officials say more than 40,000 tickets have been sold, it’s a never-ending series of cool stories involving four clubs, starting with star power. .
There’s a reason why these four teams were selected for this trip. Because they are the most attractive, sexy and popular in the league.
For example, the Rabbitohs are co-owned by movie star Russell Crowe, who is out of the country filming a movie and can’t attend the games. Australian film star Hugh Jackman is a big Manly supporter and is expected to attend Saturday’s game.
Here are some of the stories from the match.
redemption
In the Sea Eagles vs. Rabbitohs matchup, the team had a disappointing 2023 season, missing out on the top eight play-offs, with Manly finishing 12th in the table.
Brisbane are coming off a disappointing Super Bowl loss to the Atlanta Falcons (again, 28-3 to Tom Brady and the Patriots), where they lost a 24-8 lead to the Penrith Panthers late in the second half of the grand final.
“I think the Broncos had a long, reflective offseason and dug into why everything went wrong. And now they’re starting this season with renewed motivation and a little bit of regret. That loss. It really hurt,” said Fox broadcaster Yvonne Sampson. “They have the motivation to make sure they kick off and not miss this game. So the Brisbane Broncos are going to be fascinating to watch.”
fullback battle
A fullback in rugby is the ultimate skill position athlete, more like a dynamic receiver or kick returner in the NFL, rather than a slow blocking back like in football. These games will feature some of the best full-backs in the world, including Manly’s Tom Trbojevic, South Sydney’s Latrell Mitchell and Brisbane’s Rhys Walsh.
Trbojevic is probably the best all-round fullback here, but he’s also very humble and quiet. Mitchell was more outgoing and cheerful, and he predicted on Saturday night that Allegiant Stadium would be renamed “Traregiant Stadium” after him.
Former NRL player and current Fox broadcaster Matty Johns called Walsh “one of the great storylines” of the match, adding: “He’s a young guy who was phenomenal last year. He’s like the NRL’s Justin Bieber. He’s a really good-looking kid. Some of the young players coming up now are incredibly charismatic, and Reese is one of them. He went to Fan Fest on the day of the grand final last year. , it was like Beatlemania. It was crazy.”
Sampson said: “We’re lining up on buses to stop fans from leaving training. Look out for Walsh.” Girls are crazy about him because he’s young, gorgeous, loves the spotlight, and is very used to being in the spotlight. So I think everyone might become a Reece Walsh fan after this week. ”
former team
Manly coach Anthony Seibold took charge of the Sydney Rabbitohs in 2018 but was sacked after just one season.
He will coach against his former team on Saturday.
One of the Broncos’ key players is veteran halfback Adam Reynolds, who won the Premiership title with the Rabbitohs in 2014 and made 231 appearances for the club.
NRL not NFL
For those unfamiliar with the sport, rugby league can feel very similar to American football. The difference is that he doesn’t have pads or a helmet and the team needs six tackles instead of four downs for him to score.
A “touchdown” in rugby is called a “try.” Players cannot throw forward passes, only lateral or backward passes.
debut
After 11 seasons with perennial losers Wests Tigers, Luke Brooks will play his first game against Manly on Saturday.
Brooks comes from where he was expected to take the club to Manly, where he is expected to play a complementary role.
“That’s the good thing about being here, just being able to focus on what I do on the field,” Brooks said. “I don’t feel like there’s that much pressure on us. We have a lot of quality players here. I can just sit back and just do my job.”
size
The field at Allegiant Stadium is not the ideal regulation size for rugby.
A commonly used field is 100 meters long and 68 meters wide. This field is 94.5 meters long and 63 meters wide.
This means skill position players have less room to move around, resulting in lower scoring matches. It may also focus on the kicking game.
Interestingly, each team has been practicing on field-sized pitches at Allegiant Stadium in preparation.
