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Alex Twal remembers exactly where he was the first time he came face to face with the angry version of David Klemmer.Anyone able to share this please
It was May 2018 at Homebush and the young Wests Tigers tyro, in his first full season in the NRL, packed into a scrum opposite the Origin front-rower.
Twal was a star on the rise and had a point to prove, so when the scrum was fed, he aimed a boot at the Steeden and tried to kick it out.
He missed.
“I ended up kicking him instead,” Twal tells CODE Sports.
Few players fire-up like David Klemmer does. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images
Klemmer flared up, and Twal became just one of a countless number of NRL players to witness the then-Bulldogs hard man’s rage.
“I was young, I was 21, and it was my first year in grade and I got a bit ahead of myself at the time,” Twal recalls.
“He gets that fire in his eyes and the big guy had to calm me down.”
This off-season, Klemmer signed a three-year deal with the Tigers after leaving the Knights. Older and wiser, the duo joked about that first encounter.
They have since formed a tight bond ahead of the Tigers’ round one clash with the Titans this Sunday.
“It was funny, the first day he came here we had a little laugh about it, but it’s all behind us now,” Twal says.
“We’re best mates here so it’s really nice.”
Alex Twal was in his first full season in the NRL when he first encountered David Klemmer. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
Asked which Wests player most stood out upon his arrival at Concord, Klemmer doesn’t hesitate.
“Twaly, he’s been good,” the 29-year-old tells CODE. “He’s probably the leader of the pack in fitness.
“He has a really high work rate and he’s someone I’m going to enjoy playing with.”
Twal repays the favour.
“He’s added a spark to the team,” he says of Klemmer.
“He comes in, works hard and despite all he’s achieved in the game, he always wants to be better and trains as hard as he can. He motivates me.
“We play in a similar position, so he motivates me to be a better version of myself and I can’t thank him enough.”
Klemmer has already had a big influence at the Tigers. Picture: Hannah Peters/Getty Images
Twal isn’t the only Tigers player already reaping the benefits of training alongside Klemmer.
“I love when he’s defending inside me, because it makes it so much easier,” says back-rower Shawn Blore, who will start on an edge at Leichhardt Oval on Sunday evening.
“When I’m tired, he’s got little pointers and he keeps talking. I try to stick close to him and be like a sponge.”
Klemmer enjoyed something of a renaissance last year, when he was one of Newcastle’s best in an inconsistent season. Despite his on-field success, he was unwanted in the Hunter, but made to feel welcome by Tim Sheens at Wests.
Never a backward step, Klemmer was one of Newcastle’s best in 2022. Picture: Ashley Feder/Getty Images
Klemmer, who made his Test debut under Sheens in 2014, vibes well with the veteran’s approach to coaching.
“People in the grandstands don’t really see it, but he’s got a different vision to a lot of coaches now,” he says. “The game’s changed, but the fundamentals don’t change at all.
“He’s an old front rower too, so it’s about how to hold the football, how to get your arms up and get an offload away.
“He’s a coach who’s going to try and improve your footy game and he loves all the little aspects of it as well.”
Behind the fairly frequent on-field outbursts and wild-eyed rage, Klemmer is a self-confessed footy nerd. He watches every NRL game each weekend, as well as reserve grade and Super League, and loves Sheens’ attention to detail.
Klemmer is enjoying his time under Tim Sheens. Picture: Hannah Peters/Getty Images
His new teammates can attest to his devotion to the game. They all knew of his reputation as an intense on-field personality, but, to a man, Klemmer’s new Tigers teammates all speak with admiration about his intelligence too.
“He’s got a mad footy brain and I was surprised by that,” says Blore. “He’s still a mad dog. He’s still a nutcase, but like a smart nutcase.
“It’s weird.”
Jake Simpkins adds: “He brings aggression, but he just brings so much knowledge of the game too. He just loves it.
“The eyes still come out, and he’ll be ready to go, but he’s very intelligent – for a front rower, especially.”
