Nofoluma wants to give elite wingers a run for their money

TheDaBoss

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WESTS TIGERS
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# Nofoaluma wants to give elite wingers a run for their money

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Alicia NewtonNRL.com Reporter

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Wests Tigers winger David Nofoaluma only has to cast his mind back to round one last year to remind him nothing can be taken for granted.

Along with having two hernias removed, off-season groin surgery interrupted Nofoaluma's preparation for the start of 2018 and he was forced to work his way back into the side via the Intrust Super Premiership.

While he added 17 games to his overall tally of 105 career appearances, the 25-year-old is determined to start 2019 on a far better note.

"It gets thrown around a lot but last year I didn't complete the pre-season and for any player that's really important," Nofoaluma told NRL.com.

"The two hernias affected me and how I ran. This year there's a lot of positives and good things that I've done to put myself in a better position to be physically fit.

Madge has changed how we think around toughness and confidence
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David Nofoaluma

"The couple of years I went well I had a decent pre-season so it's definitely important. I want to do that again and feel a lot more settled this time around."

Nofoaluma usually gives away a height advantage to rival wingers but a brutal pre-season under new coach Michael Maguire has convinced him he can match it with the game's best.

"I get along great with Madge and the club has picked up a good one," he said.

"I'm confident for the season and what he's done with us mentally - he's changed how we think around toughness and confidence.

"There's a lot of things he's brought from his success elsewhere and we're all adapting to his style of coaching."

Rival wingers David Fusitu'a and Blake Ferguson finished 2018 leading in the try-scoring and metre-eating departments respectively and Nofoaluma wants to combine the two aspects of his game to play his part in helping Wests Tigers return to the finals for the first time since 2011 .

"I have a goal to be up there with the best," he said.

"I was in a position last year, and not many players know, but I was so hungry to win. I was doing everything I could to try and get us over the line.

"I've had a focus around my defence and know I needed to work on that. I've played over 100 games now for this club and I want to build something great and set us up to win a grand final."
 
I always really liked this guy.

Great attitude and a tiger through and through.

I hope he kicks on in terms.of defence and we see a few more of those spectacular tries.
 
I'm waiting for the "XYZ is training the HOUSE DOWN, YO" Posts to start raining in shortly - and not just NOFO ones.

As it stands our backline has the following potential candidates:

Thompson,
MBye
Nofo
Momo
Jennings (If signed)
Fonua
Marsters
Brooks
Marshall
J-Rey
MCK
Gamble - won't count him at this stage.

11 doesn't go into 7.

Lock in Brooks, Mbye, and Marsters IMHO.

8 into 4, possibly 5 as someone like MCK could be bench - all spots up for grabs IMHO.

So lads… who's training the house down?
 
One thing I like about this is that there is some competition and depth. Last year we had Tui earmarked for the fullback spot and for whatever reason he didn't perform and it seemed we were shuffling deck chairs on the titanic. Now it seems we have more options so when injuries or poor performances occur we can hopefully have decent alternatives.
 
Love Nofo, and the bloke is a bona fide meter eater, but those damn defensive reads and lapses are not what you expect from a bloke who has played over 100 first grade games, he should not still be working on it. Might be time to put a 13 on his back and get him running off Twal's or Eisenhuth's hip, it would do his defense the world of good too.
 
I know Underdog, its a call from out of left field, but with his low centre of gravity, fantastic leg speed he would make him a great 2nd phase runner, plus support in defense will only help his overall game. Besides everyone wants to see a return to 2005 attack when it was all players in motion, this great club won a grand final with three second rowers at the same weight as Nofo is now (Galea, Dene and Liam).
 
Same every year with Nofo - no concerns on his metres or his work in early tackles, nor his finishing, only about his mobility / decision-making in defence and bomb defusal. That's the difference between Nofo and the "elite" wingers.

There's always the argument about whether or not the defensive lapses are his fault or the inside men, but basically Nofo has never been quite agile enough on his feet or in his brain to regularly snuff out mistakes, and that is what elite wingers do - elite wingers can still defend errors from their inside men.
 
I guess that why wingers score a lot of tries cause they are marked by wingers….

Last year that edge improved on previous years Nofoaluma was part of that..
 
I still think he adds value and should be the first winger picked.

More upside than downside, and his side of the field stopped leaking points last year when there were better defenders and structures around him.
 

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