Doubled-up with the Tele!
This PR exercise has Lee's fingerprints all over it!
Trying to use the media to attack the club and appear as a sympathetic figure - instead this ill-judged crap has further justfied why he had to be terminated (just like Lee did in his post-termination interviews)!!
Fatima Kdouh: Well Nofa, you’ve just penned a new deal with Salford in the UK Super League for 2024, why did you make that call?
David Nofoaluma: I think it was a good move for me to get out of Sydney and also experience what it’s like overseas. I think there’s something exciting about it. I kind of got a taste of that when I left Sydney to go down to Melbourne of what it’s like to have a fresh start there. So I know what it’s like to go into a new environment. It’ll be life changing.
FK: Did you worry you would struggle to find a new home?
DN: I knew I had the ability. I knew for myself that my head wasn’t there at the Tigers. And with everything going on I couldn’t reach my potential and be motivated to be there.
They obviously didn’t want me there and I made it clear to them I didn’t want to be there.
So, it was best for both of us to part ways. I’ve done a lot for the club, a lot of achievements, I’m all-time highest try scorer at the club. I don’t want to harbour bad blood against that team. I had a lot of opportunities to go to other clubs every time I came off contract and I decided to stay. It might have been better for me to leave back then when I was younger. I understood that they (Tigers) struggling and I was performing. A few players left and I thought it’d be good for me to stay and without turns out, you know, it’s business. Unfortunately, for me I ended up in this position.
FK: Are you open to coming back to the NRL?
DN: I’m at the age (30) now that, you know, I’m open to everything. But at this present moment, all I’m focused on is going to Salford and putting my best foot forward for them. I’ve got a lot of experience, so I’m sure I can help them out in certain ways. I’m open to coming back or even staying in England if things work out.
FK: How did it come to this? Can you pinpoint a time where things really changed?
DN: I was in a similar position last year (2022), I was playing reserve grade for the Magpies and I still remember the phone call from Craig Bellamy. I got named to play for reserve grade in the same week got named to play NRL for the Storm when I did the loan deal. Everyone could see how I played down there. I enjoyed the new environment, it was nothing against the Tigers. I just got over losing. It’s a team sport, you can’t do anything individually and no matter how good you are if the team is not performing it affects you as a person. As I got older it affected me.
FK: At the time, Melbourne showed interest in keeping you. Did you want to come back to the Tigers?
DN: It really started when I stopped being included on members days. I could just sense an aura that they didn’t want me to be there. I didn’t want to go back from Melbourne and that’s where it started. I made it clear to the club that I didn’t want to come back. I know that it was only a loan but I think that played a part in it. When I left for Melbourne, I thought I left for good.
FK: So your exit is almost two years in the making?
DN: There were a lot of things written and said, especially when things weren’t going great. I think that hurts the most because there’s other ways of dealing with it, which is in house. But unfortunately that is what the Tigers have been known for. I hope they’re successful. I hope they have a great year. I’m not the type to hold grudges.
FK: Speaking of things written, a lot was said about your relationship with new coach Benji Marshall? How did that relationship break down?
DN: There was a bit of tension this year between me and him. Me and him were so close, we played together for years. He said to me he’s that coach, and he told me early in the pre-season I wasn’t going to start next year. That hurt me a bit. I respect that he’s got to make tough decisions. Looking back, I think he made an example for all the other players because I’ve been there for such a long time. I know deep down he’s a good person, he’s only doing what is best for the club.
FK: You’ve had a lot of coaches in your time. How did Craig Bellamy rate in comparison?
DN: I was there for four or five months. I’d say I’ve learned more in five months than in 10 years at the Tigers. That’s got to say something. There were things I didn’t know and there was a lot I had to learn on my own at the Tigers. I still remember a couple my first spray from Bellamy. It was in a team meeting. I still remember all the boys looking at me.
FK: What did he spray you about? What did he say?
DN: It was very intense. I don’t want to say too much. I want to respect him. But he knew I was a very confident player. I got on with the boys there. One thing they do is spend a lot of time together which is something I have never experienced before.
FK: The Tigers are infamous for leaking what is going on internally, how did that affect the side, do you think?
DN: Now going through it, I feel for the players that did. It’s not nice. One thing you want to be able to do as a club, you want your players to leave and have good things to say. They found it hard to find top players when I was there, maybe that was because former players tell them things find their way outside the four walls. The club has made changes, I think that will stop the leaks. Once that stops, it helps the players mentally. We’re human beings, not just athletes.
FK: After everything, how do you feel about the club?
DN: It’s tough to say. The fans are so good. They have always been good to me. But there was a lot of drama. I’m not the biggest talker. I observe and I observed a lot of things. That worked for a while… looking back maybe if I had a bigger voice… I’m part of the history of the club as the greatest try scorer. I was Dally M winger of the year in 2020 when we were at the bottom of the ladder. Sometimes I think if I stayed at Melbourne I might have played in rep teams. But in a way the Tigers will always be a part of me. It was hard being part of a losing outfit for 11 years, it impacts you.
