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Centre Jerome Ropati credits being dropped by the New Zealand Warriors for giving him a "new lease of life" in the National Rugby League (NRL).
The visit of the high-flying Bulldogs tomorrow will be Ropati's second appearance for the Warriors after his return to first-grade.
Rather than being disappointed over a two-week spell on the sidelines following a patch of poor form, he saw the demotion as positive.
"It was a good time to rest and clear my head a bit," he said.
"I had been putting a lot of pressure on myself and I was able to reassess things, concentrate on training and just support the guys on the field."
The World Cup-winning Kiwi made his comeback to the NRL in the 28-14 away defeat to Brisbane and marked the occasion by providing a bone-jarring moment.
He produced a huge shoulder charge on prop Joel Clinton, who was knocked unconscious as the pair clashed heads.
"I remember he focused his eyes on me and ran straight to me and I thought, I'm either going to try to launch myself at him to stop him, or I'm going to get bowled over," Ropati said.
"The collision surprised me a bit. I'm fortunate to come away unscathed other than a bit of a shoulder injury. It just happened the way it did."
Ropati said the mood within the Warriors remained upbeat, even though two successive defeats in Queensland have left their playoff hopes hanging on a thread.
With nine rounds to go, the Auckland-based club have dropped to 12th on the ladder, five points outside the top eight and with no byes left.
They had their moments against the Broncos, especially in the first quarter, when they played mistake-free football to dominate field position and lead 8-0.
"We took a lot of confidence out of that," Ropati said.
"We just didn't get a lot of ball in the second half and we fell away in a few areas, but those areas can be fixed."
The Warriors will be without inspirational skipper Steve Price, who is in State of Origin camp with Queensland. Price scored both their tries against Brisbane and also carried the ball for a game-high 221m.
However, the Bulldogs, who are second in the competition, have had to plug even more holes in the line-up.
Among a host of frontline personnel unavailable are halfback Brett Kimmorley, hooker Michael Ennis and centre Josh Morris, who are on New South Wales Origin duty, and suspended Kiwi forward Greg Eastwood.
The replacements called up include former Kiwi winger Matt Utai, who has been slotted in at centre to mark Ropati.
"They're losing a lot of key players but they've replaced quality players with quality players," Ropati said.
"They're at the top of the table and that's the way we need to approach it."
The stormy conditions predicted to hit Auckland this weekend means wet weather can be expected at Mt Smart Stadium for the third match in row.
However, that could be a good omen for the Warriors.
They have won their last two fixtures at home 14-0 and 13-0 shutouts against the West Tigers and Newcastle both of which were played out in the rain.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/2585555/Ropati-feels-new-lease-of-life-after-spell-on-sideline
The visit of the high-flying Bulldogs tomorrow will be Ropati's second appearance for the Warriors after his return to first-grade.
Rather than being disappointed over a two-week spell on the sidelines following a patch of poor form, he saw the demotion as positive.
"It was a good time to rest and clear my head a bit," he said.
"I had been putting a lot of pressure on myself and I was able to reassess things, concentrate on training and just support the guys on the field."
The World Cup-winning Kiwi made his comeback to the NRL in the 28-14 away defeat to Brisbane and marked the occasion by providing a bone-jarring moment.
He produced a huge shoulder charge on prop Joel Clinton, who was knocked unconscious as the pair clashed heads.
"I remember he focused his eyes on me and ran straight to me and I thought, I'm either going to try to launch myself at him to stop him, or I'm going to get bowled over," Ropati said.
"The collision surprised me a bit. I'm fortunate to come away unscathed other than a bit of a shoulder injury. It just happened the way it did."
Ropati said the mood within the Warriors remained upbeat, even though two successive defeats in Queensland have left their playoff hopes hanging on a thread.
With nine rounds to go, the Auckland-based club have dropped to 12th on the ladder, five points outside the top eight and with no byes left.
They had their moments against the Broncos, especially in the first quarter, when they played mistake-free football to dominate field position and lead 8-0.
"We took a lot of confidence out of that," Ropati said.
"We just didn't get a lot of ball in the second half and we fell away in a few areas, but those areas can be fixed."
The Warriors will be without inspirational skipper Steve Price, who is in State of Origin camp with Queensland. Price scored both their tries against Brisbane and also carried the ball for a game-high 221m.
However, the Bulldogs, who are second in the competition, have had to plug even more holes in the line-up.
Among a host of frontline personnel unavailable are halfback Brett Kimmorley, hooker Michael Ennis and centre Josh Morris, who are on New South Wales Origin duty, and suspended Kiwi forward Greg Eastwood.
The replacements called up include former Kiwi winger Matt Utai, who has been slotted in at centre to mark Ropati.
"They're losing a lot of key players but they've replaced quality players with quality players," Ropati said.
"They're at the top of the table and that's the way we need to approach it."
The stormy conditions predicted to hit Auckland this weekend means wet weather can be expected at Mt Smart Stadium for the third match in row.
However, that could be a good omen for the Warriors.
They have won their last two fixtures at home 14-0 and 13-0 shutouts against the West Tigers and Newcastle both of which were played out in the rain.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/2585555/Ropati-feels-new-lease-of-life-after-spell-on-sideline
