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On November 1, the \u201cBattle for the West\u201d stops being a concept and starts being a football team. While the Sydney press is busy squinting at flight maps and the PNG Chiefs are counting their tax-free dollars, Mal Meninga will blow a whistle in Perth and change the script.<\/p>\n
The Chiefs have grabbed a good one out of the blocks with Jarome Luai, but that\u2019s the nature of the beast when you can offer a tax-free fish. Even the Dolphins couldn\u2019t land those names early; they had to build their catch over time. The Bears might have been given the short straw by the pundits, but they have one thing that levels the field.<\/p>\n
They have an Immortal.<\/p>\n
The hype is all north right now, but it ignores some of the realities. In Port Moresby, you\u2019re training in 90 per cent humidity \u2014 that\u2019s a survival test. It creates problems around maintaining weight, exhaustion, and even simple things like infections that can sideline a player in that heat. Meanwhile, the Sydney media focus stays on the airport lounge. They talk about the journey like it\u2019s a holiday trek, but they rarely mention what Perth actually offers. It\u2019s a world-class city with a lifestyle that rivals anything in the game. You won\u2019t hear Mal complaining about the travel. Things out of his control won\u2019t get a second of his time \u2014 he\u2019ll be too busy building the \u201cWhy\u201d in the West.<\/p>\n
Mal Meninga, inaugural head coach of the Perth Bears.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
The Sydney press is handing the Chiefs a rails run because of one big signature, while labelling Perth a \u201cbasket case\u201d because a few suits have changed seats. <\/p>\n
They\u2019re missing the point. I\u2019ve sat in a room and listened to Mal address a team. He has a presence that you can\u2019t coach, and you can\u2019t fake. When the media treats Perth like an inconvenience, he\u2019ll use that to drive the players into a classic \u201cUs vs Them\u201d battle. He knows the \u201cwhy\u201d for today\u2019s player is the secret sauce of effort.<\/p>\n
Of course, Mal wants a marquee player. Every coach does. But with the start date looming, he\u2019s playing the hand he\u2019s been dealt, and that means building the foundations first. He is recruiting men that are ready for a fight, because he has to. You can see the blueprint in the blokes already on the bus. He\u2019s gone for the hard heads like Scott Sorensen and Liam Henry\u2014 players who know that winning the collision is the only way to play. He\u2019s brought in Tyran Wishart, Nick Meaney, and Josh Curran. These are men who understand inside pressure and winning the ruck. Add in Siosifa Talakai and the boys from the Super League like Harry Newman and James McDonnell, and you see a squad being built to bend the line and scrap for every inch.<\/p>\n
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