Rugby league great Brad Fittler has lauded Cronulla’s signing of Storm star Dale Finucane, declaring the hard-nosed forward will be the “voice” and “actions” of a change of culture in the Shire.
It was revealed yesterday the Sharks had beaten rival clubs the Wests Tigers and Dragons to sign Finucane to a four-year deal.
The 29-year-old’s signing follows the recent recruits of Storm utility Nicho Hynes and Roosters assistant coach Craig Fitzgibbon – who will lead the Sharks from next season.
With a host of changes coming in, Fittler, who’s coached Finucane at Origin level, said the addition of the Storm forward would do wonders for the club, especially rookie head coach Fitzgibbon.
“A lot of people talk about culture, whether it’s in sporting teams or businesses or whatever it is,” Fittler told Wide World of Sports’ The Final Whistle. “The bottom line is, culture is your actions.”
“When you watch this bloke, every time he has your team colours on, he just shows every other person around them what they should be doing.
“From a team that is going to be developing a new coach, he will be so helpful to Craig Fitzgibbon from the point of view – he will be the voice or the actions of what you want your players to do.
“He does it every single day, every minute of every day, and that alone is going to be a great benefit for the club. Especially for a rookie coach.”
Asked if Finucane was the most well-prepared player he had ever coached, Fittler said the future Shark was “pretty close” to Penrith superstar Nathan Cleary in terms of preparation.
“I don’t know from a point of view with Dale about video because I don’t think he would have to watch as much video, it’s more about him getting his body ready and his mind ready,” Fittler said.
“Nathan from the point of thew of, he would know more about every single player than anyone else that I’ve seen. A couple of real professionals.”
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
Shaun Johnson reacts to nasty injury: The Final Whistle – Round 19
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
