Dyldam Parramatta Eels Corey Norman says his side is calm and relaxed heading into tomorrow’s Downer NRL Auckland Nines.
Speaking at the Nines Captain’s Call this morning, Norman was full of smiles, confirming the Blue and Gold were eager to get out onto the field and kick off their 2016 season.
“It’s the first bit of footy for the year, and it’s a bit of fun so I can’t wait to get out there tomorrow,” Norman said.
“I think the boys are just cruising. Everybody is just excited to play tomorrow,” he added.
“We can throw around the pill without being at training and we are playing for something so it should be good.”
The Eels are looking forward to the two-day tournament, with Norman confirming that a lot of his squad will be enjoying the conditions.
“The Nines are a bit of fun. There is a lot more space out there and you can throw the ball around a bit, and we have a few boys in the squad that like a bit of open space so it should be good to see how they go.” Norman said.
With Norman honoured with the captaincy duties over the next days, the skipper said he would be focused on his side, rather than trying to predict the play style of his opposition.
“It’s hard to pick how they are going to play their footy,” Norman said.
“You don’t know what the boys are going to do out there, and I think half of the teams don’t know what they are going to do out there!”
The Downer NRL Auckland Nines kicks off tomorrow (Saturday 6 February) with the Eels to play their first game of the tournament against the Melbourne Storm at 12:55pm (NZST).
