Speaker 1: We go, Hi, its thanks for being here with us.
Speaker 1: The season creeping up very quickly and you get to
Speaker 1: kick it off in Las Vegas. How are you feeling
Speaker 1: about twenty twenty five overall?
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's come pretty quick. Yes, it's really exciting, and
Speaker 2: I know everyone probably sits here and says the same
Speaker 2: thing at this time. The everyone's training hard and we're
Speaker 2: working really hard for each other and looking good. But yeah,
Speaker 2: I feel like this preseason has been a really good
Speaker 2: one for us. It's been short, but it's been intense,
Speaker 2: and we've got some new additions like Adfinil Blake, who's
Speaker 2: training the house down. So yeah, it's very exciting that
Speaker 2: we've got a new player of his stature and his ability.
Speaker 2: So I think it's going to add another dimension into
Speaker 2: our group this year. And what way to start over
Speaker 2: in Vegas against the reigning premiers.
Speaker 1: We'll get into the new edition soon. But how just
Speaker 1: spend the off season? What did you do?
Speaker 3: I added my best mate.
Speaker 2: It's wedding over in Bali, so I was his best man,
Speaker 2: which was one of the best ads of my life. Like,
Speaker 2: weddings are awesome, but being in the bridal players is
Speaker 2: like my first prople.
Speaker 3: Of time doing it and.
Speaker 2: Just seeing the emotions of the day, the nervousness of
Speaker 2: him when he was like strolling up and down waiting
Speaker 2: for us to walk out to go and start the
Speaker 2: proceeding of the wedding, and yeah, it was just like
Speaker 2: it was just a really nice feeling and just watching
Speaker 2: him grow from a young man to a young boy
Speaker 2: to a man and just being every step of the way,
Speaker 2: and it was a really cool thing that I was.
Speaker 3: Good to be a part of.
Speaker 1: It's always those like big moments in life. It puts
Speaker 1: probably your career and stuff into perspective. Hey, like you
Speaker 1: get that off season and you get to experience I
Speaker 1: think it's so much bigger than footy.
Speaker 3: Yeah it is.
Speaker 2: It probably come at like the perfect time for me.
Speaker 2: You know, there was a lot said about me in
Speaker 2: the media in the back end of the year. It
Speaker 2: was just a perfect time to go switch off and
Speaker 2: be around all the best people I know, all my
Speaker 2: best mates I grew up with from your minor and
Speaker 2: we were all in the same place at the same
Speaker 2: time for the first time in forever, and I just
Speaker 2: felt like a little kid again, just running around looking
Speaker 2: everywhere I looked with someone I grew up with, and
Speaker 2: not even the boys, you know, some of the girls
Speaker 2: we grew up with from high school as well, seeing
Speaker 2: them and how happy to all their partners and we're
Speaker 2: all just such a tight knit group. And I just
Speaker 2: sort of forgot who I was in that moment, and
Speaker 2: I'm just the Niko Hines that they grew up with.
Speaker 2: That they don't give a shit about me running out
Speaker 2: into a stadium full of eighty thousand people and playing
Speaker 2: a game of footy. You know, they just love me
Speaker 2: for me and put things into perspective big time that
Speaker 2: you know, there's a lot of things that are.
Speaker 3: Bigger than a game of rugby league and.
Speaker 2: Been there on the special day for your best mate's
Speaker 2: that's much more important than losing a game of footy.
Speaker 3: And yeah, so I put a.
Speaker 2: Lot of things in the light for me and moving forward,
Speaker 2: you know, taking on this year, there's a few things
Speaker 2: that I want to put in place and so that
Speaker 2: you know, I'm not really just narrowed in on just
Speaker 2: forty twenty four to seven. That's how I've always lived
Speaker 2: my life, you know. I want to spend time with
Speaker 2: loved lines and be happy off field, and that's going.
Speaker 3: To transition on the field, So what a better balance?
Speaker 3: Better balance?
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, work life balance. Everyone experiences that.
Speaker 3: Experiences it.
Speaker 2: You know, whether you're a teacher, do what you do,
Speaker 2: brick layer, tradees, whatever it is.
Speaker 3: You know you need to get everything.
Speaker 2: Right off the work paddic first or the work job site,
Speaker 2: whatever it is, so you can be at your best
Speaker 2: every day. And now it's something that I'll I'll be
Speaker 2: doing this year for sure.
Speaker 1: You touched on Adam fanil Blake. What was your first
Speaker 1: impression when he turned up for day one and pre season?
Speaker 3: Wow, you're big. Well, I'm new Adam.
Speaker 2: For a little while, we played a bit of school
Speaker 2: boy foot together and then I did my first preseason
Speaker 2: mainly with him in the day, So I just hadn't
Speaker 2: spoke or been in close proximity with him for a
Speaker 2: long time other than on the foota field, and it
Speaker 2: was just nice to see him walk through our gates.
Speaker 2: And he's a big boy, he's athletic, and I just
Speaker 2: feel like he's got an aura about him that you know,
Speaker 2: someone that you.
Speaker 3: Want to play with.
Speaker 2: And I'm just really glad that he's chose the Sharks,
Speaker 2: And yeah, our combinations gone pretty well at the moment,
Speaker 2: and I'm just really looking forward to building a connection
Speaker 2: with him and then building a connection on the field
Speaker 2: as well.
Speaker 1: You talk about his aura and his presence from the
Speaker 1: outside looking in, he ticks all the boxes of being
Speaker 1: like that leading enforcer, you know, that leader of the pack.
Speaker 1: Do you reckon he can fill that role? Well?
Speaker 3: Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 2: You know, we've got a really good four pack as
Speaker 2: it is, and it's just going to benefit all the
Speaker 2: players around him.
Speaker 3: I reckon this year and our team.
Speaker 2: And you know, if he can lead in the direction
Speaker 2: we want to go and the boys can jump on
Speaker 2: the back of that, then I can't see why the
Speaker 2: big boys in the middle they can have a successful year.
Speaker 2: And you know, I think the way her players can
Speaker 2: help out, some of the players play their better footy
Speaker 2: as well.
Speaker 3: In the middle. So yeah, it's exciting times.
Speaker 2: Obviously it's all talk at the moment, so we need
Speaker 2: to go action it, And yeah, I look forward to
Speaker 2: hopefully over the first few weeks we were building the
Speaker 2: combinations nicely in the middle there and us spine playsing
Speaker 2: to off the back of that.
Speaker 1: There's another new recruit. Doesn't get the headlines, but Joheppapuru,
Speaker 1: Nephi's twin first of all. But I remember at the
Speaker 1: Raiders he was one of, if not the fittest player
Speaker 1: down in Canberra. Have you had much to do with
Speaker 1: him yet, Yeah.
Speaker 2: He's he come in really fit. Actually, I heard about
Speaker 2: how fit he was, and he leads a lot of
Speaker 2: the fitness drills with the forwards and majority of the
Speaker 2: backs too.
Speaker 3: So I played All Stars with.
Speaker 2: Him last year and you know, he came in pretty quiet,
Speaker 2: but by the end of that, you know he is very,
Speaker 2: very proud man of who he was and who he is.
Speaker 2: So yeah, it's a really good addition. He one of
Speaker 2: the best Last Cup players last year.
Speaker 3: I believe.
Speaker 2: And he debut against Usfurd Cambra last round in twenty
Speaker 2: twenty three, and I thought he had.
Speaker 3: A really really good game and he's got.
Speaker 2: Really good skill, good leg speed, is really fit. So
Speaker 2: you know, if we're looking for a small forward on
Speaker 2: the bench and he can play nine to two, so
Speaker 2: I dare say we're playing a little bit of food
Speaker 2: for us this year.
Speaker 3: If he's caught upon, for sure.
Speaker 1: I'm sure you've packed it up and put his bed
Speaker 1: twenty twenty four and focus on twenty twenty five. But
Speaker 1: now that you've had enough time to rest and reset,
Speaker 1: how do you reflect on the year that was?
Speaker 2: Yeah, Look, we started the year really well last year.
Speaker 2: I think we won eleven out of the twelve start
Speaker 2: the year or maybe ten out of twelve.
Speaker 3: We're on a really good run there. And then the
Speaker 3: origin pirid happened.
Speaker 2: Obviously, thinks didn't go the way I would have liked
Speaker 2: in that period, and then I think the shark's footy
Speaker 2: in my footy.
Speaker 3: You know, it was a bit I wasn't hold, but
Speaker 3: I just didn't go the way we'd like.
Speaker 2: Or planned and that was hard to deal with. And
Speaker 2: then and then I got injured and I was out
Speaker 2: for eight weeks and come back and played.
Speaker 3: It's a decent pooty for the finals run.
Speaker 2: So yeah, like as a whole, I wouldn't call it
Speaker 2: successful because I guess I think one team that's successful
Speaker 2: at the end of the year.
Speaker 3: But we treaded in the right directions again.
Speaker 2: You know, we went our first semi final for a while,
Speaker 2: We got to a prelium for the first time UNDERFITZI.
Speaker 2: You know, we made top four for two out of
Speaker 2: three years. That fits in a couple of us have
Speaker 2: been there, so yeah, we're treading the right direction as
Speaker 2: a team and individually. You know, I've learned how a
Speaker 2: lot of lessons last year that I'm really glad it's happened,
Speaker 2: because sometimes that you need to learn those lessons and
Speaker 2: all the great to go through those lessons. So yeah,
Speaker 2: I'll be looking forward to putting them into place this
Speaker 2: year and all the lessons I've learned and playing a
Speaker 2: lot better footy from those lessons.
Speaker 1: It's a great attitude to have, you know, to look
Speaker 1: back on a not so great season and take the
Speaker 1: lessons out of it. So what are some of those
Speaker 1: lessons that you'll be able to implement or I guess
Speaker 1: lean on coming into this year.
Speaker 2: I think one staying away from people's opinions and social
Speaker 2: media and just really focusing on my life and controlling
Speaker 2: what I can control. I can't control what people are
Speaker 2: going to say, I can't control the experts on TV
Speaker 2: talking about certain things, and then.
Speaker 3: Just probably in play stuff. Yeah, I think that's that's
Speaker 3: that's mainly.
Speaker 2: It'd really like, yeah, just not worrying about then they
Speaker 2: say is out there, and yeah, just really controlling what
Speaker 2: I can control and then probably middle parts of the year.
Speaker 2: I think we maybe we got that wrong a couple
Speaker 2: of years in a row. So I reckon just when
Speaker 2: we get to that middle part of the year again,
Speaker 2: really knuckling down and focusing on that part so it
Speaker 2: can set us.
Speaker 3: Up for the back end of the year.
Speaker 1: Beating the Cowboys in week two of the finals and
Speaker 1: making it to the pre lim How sweet was that victory?
Speaker 2: Yeah, it was good and it was nice. Again, a
Speaker 2: lot of talk about the Shark's not being able to
Speaker 2: win a final, and as much as you don't focus
Speaker 2: on that during the time in that week, is obviously
Speaker 2: it's there and we don't We didn't mention it, We
Speaker 2: didn't want to talk about it. But obviously every player
Speaker 2: would have had people around them talking to them about it,
Speaker 2: whether it's family, friends, looking on social media.
Speaker 3: Everyone sees it, everyone hears it.
Speaker 2: So it is a bit of an elephant in the room,
Speaker 2: you know, And so it is a real thing.
Speaker 3: As much as you try and say it's not, it
Speaker 3: was a real thing.
Speaker 2: And I'm just really glad that we got it done
Speaker 2: and we went out and smashed in that first half.
Speaker 3: A little bit scary in the second half.
Speaker 2: But we still got the job done, and yeah, it
Speaker 2: was it was just a nice feeling of dressing room.
Speaker 2: It was a nice feeling after that storm game where
Speaker 2: we didn't go play our best and hopefully we can
Speaker 2: just keep building on that and get another semi final
Speaker 2: or maybe a couple this year and for premiership.
Speaker 1: But you must have felt vindicated to like, yeah, we
Speaker 1: can win finals, we can get to a prelim. We
Speaker 1: are there.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's right, and we always we always knew we
Speaker 2: belong there.
Speaker 3: Yeah, Like for.
Speaker 2: The last few years we come at the end of
Speaker 2: the regular season was second, I think six, and then fourth.
Speaker 2: So it's like the last three years we've been the
Speaker 2: top eight. Last two out of three years we've been
Speaker 2: top four. We just maybe couldn't get over the line.
Speaker 2: Like twenty twenty two we lost by fur bid in
Speaker 2: those finals, but twenty twenty three we lost by a
Speaker 2: field goal, and then two two lost by field goal
Speaker 2: as well, and so we slowly tread in the right directions.
Speaker 2: And last year we know we've got a lesson in
Speaker 2: Melbourne and we won a game in the final series.
Speaker 1: So.
Speaker 3: I feel like we do belong there.
Speaker 2: It's just about each year we're building and building and building,
Speaker 2: and hopefully this year is another year like that and
Speaker 2: you can keep going, maybe one or two extra fur and.
Speaker 1: Then you've got your heart's breaken by the Panthers. What
Speaker 1: a way to come be brought back down to earth.
Speaker 3: Yeah, And you know.
Speaker 2: What, if you're going to go out, you want to
Speaker 2: go out by the premiers.
Speaker 3: I guess, And.
Speaker 2: That's that's probably a once in a lifetime team, you know.
Speaker 2: Like I know, a lot of teams back in other
Speaker 2: eras have done what they've done, you know, but I
Speaker 2: feel like right now it's the toughest it's ever been
Speaker 2: in this game, and what they've been able to achieve
Speaker 2: over the last few years is pretty amazing.
Speaker 3: And they're going to be a hard team to beat
Speaker 3: again this year. And we learned a lot of lessons.
Speaker 2: Again, we've reviewed that game and you know, we'll learn
Speaker 2: from that and what a way to do it and
Speaker 2: play them again straight away around one in Vegas?
Speaker 3: How good?
Speaker 1: Yeah, talk about pressure. We'll full steam ahead for twenty
Speaker 1: twenty five then, And so how are you feeling physically, mentally,
Speaker 1: everything emotionally heading into this season?
Speaker 3: I feel great.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's probably the happiest I've ever been in my life,
Speaker 2: the most ready I've ever been for a game of footy.
Speaker 2: You know, I say a lot previous year is about
Speaker 2: the same thing. But I was just able to go
Speaker 2: and switch off in the off season and really just
Speaker 2: knuckle down on fixing the lessons that I was saying
Speaker 2: before and becoming a better person and a better family member,
Speaker 2: but a boyfriend, bet a brother, bet of mate.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 2: I've just really found myself in the off season again.
Speaker 2: And yeah, it's really excited to see what we can
Speaker 2: do as a Sharks team this year.
Speaker 1: But a lot of talk about like ew and Branden,
Speaker 1: who wears six, who wears seven? What's the plans, Like
Speaker 1: how's your combination coming together? Because it is your second
Speaker 1: year as well, You're going to be better for having
Speaker 1: last year under your belt for sure.
Speaker 2: Well, he's at his shoulder, so he hasn't been in
Speaker 2: training a hell of a lot. He's starting to become
Speaker 2: good now, so we'll be looking to build that connection
Speaker 2: and hopefully pick up where we left off pretty quickly.
Speaker 2: But yeah, it's just about finding the balance of how
Speaker 2: we like to play. We're in a unique position where
Speaker 2: I feel like we can both play six and seven,
Speaker 2: So yeah, to see what the coach thinks the next
Speaker 2: couple of weeks.
Speaker 3: But it's exciting.
Speaker 2: You know, he'll be looking forward to a big year
Speaker 2: after hope. He just signed a good contract extension, so yeah,
Speaker 2: people will be talking about him a lot more now.
Speaker 2: So he's going to hopefully deal with that the way
Speaker 2: you can and be better for it. And I'm excited
Speaker 2: to see how I was gonna play this year.
Speaker 1: It's funny because a lot of focus tends to be
Speaker 1: put on what the jersey numbers are, But is it
Speaker 1: fair to say it doesn't really matter what number you
Speaker 1: have on your back. You each have an individual role
Speaker 1: that you have to play, and that might change throughout season.
Speaker 2: Yeah, for sure, Like there's going to be times where
Speaker 2: he might get it war more than men, and I
Speaker 2: might get more more than him. Like, it's just the
Speaker 2: way we play, and regardless to what number on the
Speaker 2: back we wear, it's just about going out and playing
Speaker 2: our natural games and making sure that fits in our
Speaker 2: system and in the Shark's way.
Speaker 3: So yeah, we're looking to do that.
Speaker 1: You mentioned earlier about how the origin period didn't go
Speaker 1: to plan. Life never goes to plan. But where's your head?
Speaker 1: Out like about representative footing. Now, it hasn't turned you
Speaker 1: off or anything like that. Na, Yeah, I just.
Speaker 3: Think that.
Speaker 2: I'm just worried about winning your premiership and that's it,
Speaker 2: and the Sharks come first, and yeah, just like if
Speaker 2: it happens, it again, it happens again.
Speaker 3: But all I want to.
Speaker 2: Do is win a premiership for the Sharks, and if
Speaker 2: we're doing that, and if we're in contention to be
Speaker 2: there at the end of the year, we should be
Speaker 2: around the top of the table during mid year. And
Speaker 2: if we're doing that, I should be playing good footy.
Speaker 2: And if my name gets chucked up.
Speaker 3: Again, so be it.
Speaker 2: But I'm not sitting here saying a goal of mine
Speaker 2: is to play Origin next year, because it's always a
Speaker 2: dream to play Origin. But my goal is purely the fact,
Speaker 2: just to make sure the Sharks are in a position
Speaker 2: to win a camp. And I reckon happily be guilty
Speaker 2: of in the past of like saying I want to
Speaker 2: play Origin this year. I want to play orogin this year.
Speaker 2: And yeah, maybe losing sight of other stuff, I don't know,
Speaker 2: But I just think right now where I'm at in
Speaker 2: my career and my life is just purely the fact
Speaker 2: that I always wanted the Sharks to be in a
Speaker 2: position to win a premiership.
Speaker 3: And that's all notice to me.
Speaker 1: Team first. So what does what does the perfect twenty
Speaker 1: twenty five look like for Nico heinzfect.
Speaker 2: Twenty twenty five? You don't lose a game of footie
Speaker 2: and you win a premiership and then you're happy off field, yeah,
Speaker 2: and you're just loving everyone around you and just living
Speaker 2: your best life.
Speaker 1: And you get to go to another wedding, bali wedding
Speaker 1: somewhere we don't alright, perfect, all right, thanks you