A heart-warming moment of sportsmanship put a sheen on the most satisfying NRL win Stephen Kearney has been a part of as coach of the Warriors on Saturday night.
After beating St George Illawarra 18-0, the Warriors gathered as a group while Dragons skipper Cameron McInnes addressed the team to thank them for their sacrifices to restart the NRL season.
The Warriors have spent four weeks in Australia and are likely to be here until at least round nine to keep the competition running after the coronavirus shutdown.
And despite the uneven scoreline, it was a gracious gesture from the Dragons who are hurting after three straight losses to start the season.
Kearney said the goodwill shown to the club from other NRL clubs has been humbling – typified by the Sydney Roosters loaning Poasa Faamausili to the club for four weeks, although they were yet to win a game themselves before this weekend.
The 24-year-old will join the Warriors on Sunday as part of a revolutionary loan deal to help the injury-hit team while staying isolated in Australia.
Saturday’s win was the first of the season for the Warriors and Kearney said it was satisfying after the ordeal his team has endured over the past few months.
“I was pretty pleased for the boys. I’m really proud of the way they’ve gone about the last couple of months,” Kearney said.
“The way they’ve responded in the last couple of months, they’ve just got on with the job and that’s what I was most pleased about.
“It means a great deal to not only the group but to families back home. We’ve got a footy club that’s still operating, all our footy staff back home, administration and all of our fans.
“I know there would have been a lot of them watching it was really pleasing to put in a performance they can be proud of.”