Manly powerhouse Olakau’atu reflects on Origin ‘rollercoaster’

After a State of Origin series in which he was selected, dropped, recalled and ultimately benched, Haumole Olakau’atu reckons he’d do it all again.

“Obviously, it’s been an up-and-down rollercoaster for myself personally, but I’m forever grateful” Olakau’atu said.

“Where else would you want to be? I’d rather be in this situation than to not play footy at all, so I’m very grateful for the last six or seven weeks. It only goes up from here.”

Olakau’atu was picked for Origin I, dumped despite NSW’s thrilling comeback victory, and then called back onto an extended bench for the decider. Due to injuries and the way the Suncorp Stadium decider in Brisbane played out, the Manly back-rower was one of two Blues players who didn’t get any game time against Queensland.

Throughout, Olakau’atu has discovered more about himself, as a player and person.

“I’ve learned that no one’s going to come and help you,” he said. “You’ve got to just cop it on the chin now and then, and learn on the way. You can only control what you can control.

“I feel like I did that really well the last six or seven weeks, and I managed to handle it really well at the same time. So I’m trying not to dwell on the past too much and just move on.”

After dropping Olakau’atu, NSW coach Laurie Daley pinpointed aspects of his game to work on. The 27-year-old feels he has done that and will return to club level a better player.

“There’s always room for improvement,” he said.

“He’s told me to fix those things to my face, and he gave me a straight answer. That’s what I’ve been trying to chase, and I feel like I’m doing a really good job with it right now.”

Olakau’atu has already posted 1124 post-contact metres this season, just behind league leaders Naufahu Whyte (1276) and Phillip Sami (1244). The Sea Eagles need the western Sydney product to continue that form when they take on the Gold Coast at Cbus Super Stadium on Sunday to stay on track for the finals.

“Every time he has come back for us, he has been one of our best players,” said Manly hooker Jake Simpkin.

“Just the way he leads by example, even through those periods where he got dropped and went in and out. Personally, I think he’s the best back-rower in the comp.

“It’s a testament to his character.”

Fellow forward Taniela Paseka predicted Olakau’atu could take his game to another level in the run to the finals.

“It’s good that Origin is over and he can lock in week-in, week-out with the team,” Paseka said.

“During Origin camp, we missed him for three or four weeks and he hasn’t been able to get his rhythm. He’s been killing it still, but he hasn’t been able to get his rhythm like he did at the start of the season.

“Now that he’s back here, it’s good to have him.”

Eels make play for Storm centre

Parramatta is attempting to prise Jack Howarth out of Melbourne, just months after the Storm refused to release him as part of a proposed swap for Zac Lomax.

Howarth is contracted to Melbourne until the end of next year, but the club has permitted him to explore his options for 2027. His availability has piqued the interest of incoming franchises Perth and PNG, although the Eels appear to be his most likely destination.

There is still tension between Melbourne and Parramatta over the Lomax affair, with the clubs unable to agree to a deal that would result in the former NSW and Australian winger shifting south.

The Eels were after one of three Storm players - Xavier Coates, Stefano Utoikamanu or Howarth - in exchange for Lomax. Melbourne weren’t prepared to release any of the trio, only offering Josiah Pahulu or Lazarus Vaalepu when attempts to rehome out-of-favour Eel Ryan Matterson went awry.

The clubs also went into battle for the signature of Bronson Xerri, with the Storm ultimately securing the Bulldogs centre from next year. The addition of Dolphins winger Jamayne Isaako, will also help offset the departures of Nick Meaney (Perth) and Will Warbrick (Warriors) next in 2027, while Xavier Coates will return after his season was written off due to an achilles injury.

While the Storm will consider allowing Howarth to go early, it remains to be seen whether they are prepared to release him to the Eels given the tensions between the clubs.

The Eels, who are in talks to sign Tigers co-captain Jarome Luai, are desperate to bolster their outside backs stocks. Parramatta coach Jason Ryles has a good relationship with Howarth from their time together in Melbourne and would be guaranteed a starting spot in the Eels backline if he made the switch.

In other contract news, St George Illawarra utility Luciano Leilua has agreed to a three-year deal with Catalans. The Tongan international joins Castleford-bound Dragons teammates Damien Cook and Tyrell Sloan in shifting to the Super League.

And Newcastle has agreed to an immediate release to rising teenage star Kingston Seve. The former Dolphins junior is seeking a move back to Queensland for family reasons and is likely to pick up a contract at the Dolphins, Titans or Broncos.

The 17-year-old has been compared to Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and, like the cross-code star, was granted an exemption to train with an NRL squad while still in his teens.

Storm suffer finals setback with star half set for surgery

Melbourne have suffered a huge blow in the run to the NRL finals, with star five-eighth Cameron Munster booked in for an operation that could see him miss the rest of the regular season.

The Storm are still a chance of playing finals. They are four points out of the top eight after 19 rounds but have a bye left in their campaign.

A 78th-minute Nick Meaney try got them home 22-18 over Gold Coast on Saturday night, but a run of seven straight defeats earlier in the season has left them four points outside the top eight.

“Melbourne Storm can confirm Cameron Munster will undergo surgery on his knee after sustaining a cartilage injury,” a club statement released on Tuesday morning read.

“Munster will begin his rehabilitation with Storm medical staff and is expected to be sidelined for at least 4-6 weeks.”

The 31-year-old representative No.6 was rested by Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy for the Titans clash after having played in all 15 club games he was available for this year and three State of Origin matches for Queensland.

The Maroons skipper was replaced by Tyran Wishart for last Sunday’s clash at AAMI Park, and the 26-year-old utility is the front-runner to start in Friday night’s match against the third-placed Sydney Roosters (28 points).

AAP