The transition to a new Club to take on his first NRL pre-season has been a relatively smooth one for Newcastle Knights young’ new recruit Will Pearsall.
One reason could be the fact he played much of his junior football with the the Entrance Tigers, just a stone’s throw down the highway and he feels at home in his new coastal town.
The other may be the quick realisation and ability to embrace the hard work he faced right from the beginning of his new journey.
From all accounts, the emerging half has lapped up every experience since he joined the Club and now eagerly awaits his first chance to represent the red and blue at the Auckland Nines tournament this weekend.
“I grew up on the Central Coast which is about an hour south of here,” he told Knights TV.
“I played for the Entrance Tigers and lived in Bateau Bay, which is just down the road from my local ground."
At 17 years old he was picked up by Manly Sea Eagle’s junior development system where he progressed to become an important cog in the Club’s Holden Cup side.
“Now I have an opportunity at Newcastle,” he beamed.
He’s the first to admit the pre-season has required him to dig deep, but he’s enjoyed every step as well as the opportunity to develop his skills.
“It’s been tough," he said. "Everything you think your first pre-season with first grade would be, but it has been really good, learning a lot and learning how hard and consistently you have to work."
"It’s all about working consistently hard. You can’t have a good day on Monday and Tuesday an average day.
“You have to consistently, every day show up and get through your work."
The keen learner says he’s been watching the Club’s experienced halves closely in a bid to advance his own skills.
“I’ve loved the experience of working with (Jarrod) Mullen and Trent Hodkinson. They are both State of Origin players and have a fair few games between them,” he said.
“It’s always good when they tip you up about a few pointers and give you tips. It really helps."
His display of conscientiousness throughout the pre-season has resulted in his selection in the Knights Auckland Nines squad.
“It was really excited,” he said about learning of his selection," Pearsell said.
“I didn’t know if I was going to go. I was hoping I had a chance to go, but if I didn’t, I wasn’t going to beat myself up over it.
“I’m really stoked to get the chance to go over.”
While the Knights have opted for emerging halves Jaelen Feeney, Brock Lamb and Pearsall to lead the team around the park, he says the side gains confidence from leadership from it’s forwards.
“We still have experience with Tariq (Sims), Robbie Rochow and Korbs (Sims) throughout the middle, but we have a lot of young blokes,” he said.
Pearsall is particularly eager to experience the atmosphere of Eden Park, where the tournament will be held on February 6 and 7.
“You watch it on TV and the crowds are just going crazy. The atmosphere is so good so I want to go out there, make the most of it and hopefully score a try and win a few games,” he said.
