Canterbury captain Michael Ennis claims the focus on rival coaches Des Hasler and Geoff Toovey will allow the players to slip under the radar heading into Friday night’s NRL finals blockbuster.
With Bulldogs mentor Hasler up against his former assistant and the club he coached to two premierships, the battle in the coach’s boxes at ANZ Stadium is expected to be as fierce as the one on the field.
Ennis was at Allianz Stadium on Monday morning for the traditional Captain’s Call, with representatives from all eight finalists gathering in Sydney ahead of the opening week of the playoffs.
And the captain of the minor premiership-winning Bulldogs believed his team’s preparation could be aided by the spotlight on the coaches, even borrowing Hasler’s favoured ‘under the radar’ analogy.
“I think it’s worked a lot into our favour,” Ennis said.
“The media distractions with the coaches will allow us as players to focus in on our preparation and work hard throughout the week without worrying about the distractions.
“You can see already the majority of the questions are about Des and Tooves.
“It’s good for us – the players under the radar.”
Meanwhile, North Queensland skipper Johnathan Thurston said he was feeling no ill-effects of the high tackle that could see Cronulla centre Ben Pomeroy become the first victim of the ARL Commission’s crackdown on illegal shoulder charges.
Pomeroy is expected to be asked to face the judiciary on Wednesday night without his charge being graded.
Sharks captain Paul Gallen said he was confident the ankle injury star five-eighth Todd Carney picked up in the loss to the Cowboys on Sunday would not hinder his preparation ahead of Sunday’s elimination final against Canberra.