Garen Casey

Let's start with Garen Casey the player. Tell us about your junior days and why you played Rugby League ?
[iI grew up in country NSW. There wasn't a lot to do except play sports and I was always energetic and happened to be quite a fast kid amongst others in that region so I naturally gravitated towards athletics, cross country and league. My dad was a ref and my 2 older brothers both played so everyone in my family were into it and Mum had a large family so we were always watching family play as well.[/i
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You started off with Parramatta & Penrith. How did you find those early days in your career in the NRL ?
[iParramatta was the club that I followed as a kid. That run they had in the 80's with the 4 premierships was awesome and I idolized Brett Kenny. Getting to train and play with him in his final years was amazing. Just witnessing first hand how he was as a player, a team mate and a general person away from the game was a huge help professionally. When I graduated from school in 1992, I was already playing at a semi-pro level (league wasn't pro until 1996) so I got thrown into the thick of it. Parramatta hadn't had any success since 1986. I was one of many that they tried to hype up as being the next best after Kenny and Sterling retired but there was no way anyone would get near what they were to the club so many of us moved on. The players are still being compared to the 80's players and that's a natural thing for people to look at in regards to good memories. When I signed with Super League in 1995, I had to leave and play at Penrith as they were aligned with the new competition. I had 2 good years out there and actually enjoyed it better out there than at Parramatta. Penrith felt like a big country town although it was a part of Western Sydney but everyone was a Panthers supporter so we always had a good following. I was probably the fittest ever in my career in 1997 at Penrith. I had a very good off season and trained in other disciplines like kayaking and boxing as well as triathlon because I knew I had to have a big year as it was the 2nd year of my Super League deal and I'd eyed off going to the UK so it was in my plan to have a successful year.[/i
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How did the move to Wakefield come about ?
[iI was actually supposed to go to Sheffield Eagles. They were waiting on an answer from John Doyle (another Aussie) who was already on contract and didn't know if he was coming back or not. When he did return, John Kear recommended me to Andy Kelly. My manager at the time had a good connection with Andy already and as he wanted to add imports to the roster, I was fortunate enough to get picked up.[/i
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Can you remember your Wakefield 1st team debut, who it was against and how it went ?
[iI played centre against Warrington at Belle Vue in the Challenge Cup. I scored in the left corner in the first few minutes I think and we went into the break in a tight match. We got run over in the second half but it was a good start to my career at least.[/i
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1998 was a massive year for Wakefield fans. What were your memories of that season (we will look at the Grand Final win in the next question) ?
[iI think it was how relaxed I felt after a few months of getting used to the game in the UK. The players all came together and bonded like a brotherhood and it's still like that to this day. There were no superstars, just a bunch of guys ripping in for each other. It took us a while to connect that way but once we did, we felt positive in what we were doing and the path that Andy had put us on. It came from some bad luck with David Mycoe dislocating his shoulder, but because of that, Andy moved Roger to half back and went and got Adam Hughes on loan from Leeds and moved me to stand off. When Josh Bostock joined us from Australia, all the pieces started to fall into place and we started our run of victories.[/i
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Now let's look at the Grand Final win against Featherstone. How did the game go for you and how did you hold your nerve to kick the winning conversion ?
[iWe were confident going into the match and there wasn't any sign of nerves amongst us. It was a frustrating match for me because I prepared well and wanted to have a big game. I didn't hit my first 3 kicks well at all. I was nailing everything else in attack and cleaning up in defence along with everyone else but I was just out of rhythm with those conversion attempts in that first half. 18-0 would have looked better on the scoreboard at half time. When we got behind in the second half, we didn't panic at all. We had a good mix of experience among us so we kept our composure. When I scored and converted in the 2nd half, I think we knew we were controlling the game from there, regardless of what the score was. I felt we just knew we hadn't hit full speed yet. We kept building pressure and made some dents in their defensive line so we were getting the better momentum and field position. And obviously when Asa Amone knocked the ball down off Roy, it was more of a hope than anything for Nick Oddy to have seen it like we all did. He definitely got it right and a big time call by the tough judge to raise it in that moment of the game.
Then Andy injected Macca into the game and they just couldn't handle his size and speed. Our forwards were great all year and I felt we could have played another half of footy. They just kept going and when Macca came on, I thought Featerstone were out on their feet. Macca brought the right intensity into the game and we all responded from that and when Franny went over, I felt that we would just go on with it from there.
I think the kick would have been worse had I not converted my last try, so I was confident that I had my rhythm again. I always hit my kicks with a slight draw so it was always a left post target line for me from that distance. I just knew I had to stay in the kick and not come out of it. When I made contact I knew it was good. Nerves didn't factor in the process at all and the guys were great as well because not one of them said anything to me beforehand. It was kind of like them saying, "hurry up and put it over because we ain't done yet"[/i
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One of the main things from that season that I remember was your partnership with Roger Kenworthy. Did you know Roger from your days in the NRL and how did things click so well in that season ?
[iRoger came from the Raiders and played alongside Meninga, Daley and Stuart who were probably 3 of the top 10 players in the game when he was there in the mid 90's. Being around players like that, you learn so much and I knew when Andy moved him to halfback, that I had an instinctive player to partner with me. I knew I didn't have to tell him what I needed because he was already doing it. We just clicked and the players responded well to him in that position. Every play I called, came from a confidence that we were all in tune with each other and Roger was a huge part of it all.....especially his blistering speed. When teams tried to lock me down, Roger would give them something else to worry about and vice versa. A lot of my freedom to roam and do my thing came from how unpredictable he was and it was perfect for everyone.[/i
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32 appearances for Wakefield and with that came 17 tries and 115 goals as well. Apart from the important try in the Grand Final, do any other ones stand out for you from the 17 you scored for Wakey ?
[iThere's a few that come to mind but probably the 2 I scored in the pouring rain at Belle Vue against Featherstone when we beat them at Home on a Friday night. Both myself and Adam got a double. The game had to be played very direct, short passing and ball control because of the weather. My general play kicking needed to be focused on getting repeat sets as well and both Roger and I were able to do that pretty well. Featherstone used a slide defence that only really worked when every player did their job. My first try was from an over-call that I had with Roy as I saw an opportunity from a mis-match and I got easily on the outside and scored in the corner 5 mins from half time. When I put Adam over a few minutes later, We had momentum and went on with it from there. Adam scored again halfway through the second half and I dived over in the corner on the bell so a good result.[/i
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Can you still remember the words to the song the players all sang when you won on the road to promotion ?
[iYes but it was better singing it after the grand final victory.[/i
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After becoming a hero for the season, you left for Salford. Can you share why you decided to go there, was it just a matter of they offered a better deal ?
[iThe Salford move was one made from a guarantee. I was coming off my Super League contract so I had to look at a similar salary. Both Salford and Wakey offered the same but I was guaranteed a Super League contract with Salford, yet the same money was on the table with Wakey but if we didn't get promoted, that contract would be voided and I would have to look elsewhere. Being in the final year of my Super League contract, I needed to get the guarantee so that was the reason. It will go down as the worst decision of my career. I just didn't feel comfortable there and they wouldn't play me at stand off. I saw very little opportunity to attack. My best game was in the Challenge Cup tie against Castleford when I played lock. I got a lot more ball and the team responded to what I was doing. It was at that time when they put me back into the centres that I reached out to Andy Kelly to get me out of there and back to Wakey. It would have happened too if it wasn't for Andy Gregory being sacked so they weren't going to release anyone. I felt I was 2 weeks away from coming back as we were working on a swap with Shane Kenwood who wanted to go back to Salford so it made perfect sense. I started to pick up injuries after that and ended up going back to Australia at the end of 1999 after the Salford doctor told the review board that I refused to play and not that I couldn't play 6 games because of a grade 2 medial tear of my knee. Pretty unethical and effectively ended my pro career. So Salford was a poor decision.[/i
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You now live in the USA and are trying to grow rugby league over there. Can you tell us more about how this started and the work you have done ?
[iBasic statement would be, the USA simply doesn't fit in Rugby League. I started the Women's game over here in 2020 and then the pandemic hit. We pushed on the best that we could but safety was a big factor and the US is a country full of litigation and the word 'sue' is tattooed on everyone's brain. The USA way is to let the enthusiastic, well intentioned people do all the work and use their own money, to then have all of that work stolen by a national governing body that had performed poorly since 2014. They had taken the Tomahawks from 9th in the World at the 2013 RLWC to 27th and then to 34th....and they thought they were doing a great job!!! I started with nothing and put the women's team on the map. When they stole it all from us in April last year, I vowed to not support their corrupted ways anymore so I focused my attention on developing the player and sharing knowledge that way rather than get involved in a bureaucracy of the USARL now. There are people in important roles at the USARL that shouldn't be there and they honestly believe that they are doing a great job........not![/i
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Let’s finish with a chance to reflect on the players you played with in your career. Give us your dream team 1-13 of players that you played with ?
[i1. Bobby Thompson (PEN)
2. Robbie Beckett (PEN)
3. Ryan Girdler (PEN)
4. Adam Hughes (WAK)
5. Josh Bostock (WAK)
6. Brett Kenny (PARRA)
7. Greg Alexander (PEN)
13. Matt Fuller (WAK)
12. Sonny Whakarau (WAK)
11. John Cartwright (PEN)
10. Francis Stephenson (WAK)
9. Craig Gower (PEN)
8. Carl MacNamara (PEN)[/i
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And from that team, who would captain it and why ?
[iGreg Alexander. He's a FREAK! Just a genuine good guy that could do 'anything' 10 times better than everyone else.[/i
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And to end with, anything you would like to add to the Wakefield fans out there ?
[iI can't thank the fans enough for the time I had at the club. Although it was short, I hope that being a part of that promotion side of 1998 will resonate in everyone's mind for many years to come. It's good to see players like Gareth Ellis acknowledge what the 98 team did for the club and it's those things that go a long way. I know it's easy for a lot of people to think of players like Neil Fox and David Topliss and all the great of the past, but when people talk about current day players, the 98 team should always be considered as being one of the greatest teams assembled and coached on the basis of what we achieved, and that's something I am very proud of, and would love to return to Belle Vue one day soon. Hopefully in the summer of 2024 for my 50th birthday in June.

And then I'm hoping to end up with my wife in Hawaii to retire.
Well that's the plan anyway.
Thanks,
Garen[/i

Graham Law

Let's start with Graham Law the player. Tell us about your junior days and why you played Rugby League ?
[iI started out at Eastmoor RLFC in the U9s, stayed there until the U15s, the team folded due to low numbers so then I moved onto Westgate Redoubt. Was always good mates and played with Stu Dickens and his dad had helped start the first youth team there. That was a great 2 years of rugby for us, stayed there until I signed for Wakefield on my 16th Birthday.[/i
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How did the involvement / move to Wakefield come about ?
[iSimilar to nowadays really apart from no scholarships, scouts start following from around the U15s and just keep in touch, invite you down to ground for a tour etc, Wakefield was always my club so was only ever going to be 1 option for me. It was a dream come true for me to sign for my local team.[/i
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Can you remember your Wakefield 1st team debut, who it was against and how it went ?
[iYes, remember it very clearly, it was Mitch Brennans last game in charge, against Featherstone at home. I was 17 and still playing academy rugby so it was a real shock to get the call up. I remember the speed of the game was a massive shock, lungs were on fire and legs were like jelly haha, absolutely loved it though and we won which was amazing.[/i
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You played during some of the best times as a Wakefield fan, especially the Grand Final against Fev. What were your memories of that season and the promotion to Super League ?
[iThat really 98 was an amazing year, the team spirit was like something I never witnessed again, you just kind of knew something special was going to happen and obviously it did. Unfortunately I didn't play in the grand final, that was Martin my older brother, he played right centre that night.
The next couple of years were also pretty special for me, making my Super League debut against all the big names like Andy Farrell and Jason Robinson etc was a bit surreal, we had it tough back then also as I'm sure you are aware, we had big money issues and going into receivership made things hard but looking back probably brought the players closer together. We were written off a couple of times and tipped for relegation but we always managed to claw our way out of whatever hole we were in. I do think Wakefield are pretty special when it comes to this.[/i
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Your Wikipedia page says, "Centre, Stand-Off, Second Row, Loose Forward". Was there any position in the team that you didn't ever cover !! And from those positions, did you have a favourite that you would say you performed better at ?
[iI once covered at hooker too, away at Widnes in the challenge cup game back in 2002 I think it was. Hated every minute of it haha. I loved it in the back row if I'm honest but always struggled to cement a place there.[/i
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Andy Kelly, John Harbin, Peter Roe & Shane Mcnally all coached at Wakefield during your time. Can you share any experiences you had with those coaches ?
[iAndy is always going to be a bit special as he was there throughout most of my time at Wakefield, him and Paul Harkin were the coaches when I signed in July 1995, he then took over coaching after Mitch left so he had a massive impact on all my early first team games. He was the one who had confidence in me looking back as an 18/19 year old to play first team rugby so lots of fond memories there. He was great at bringing the team together and getting us to bond.
John Harbin was also great, his passion for young hard working lads was a real eye opener to me. Suppose looking at his track record bringing youngsters through it speaks volumes. His discipline was immense, if you tried shirking in any way you were definitely in Johns bad books haha putting it politely. It didn't matter who you were or how good you thought you were if you didn't turn up training early and put 110% you knew about it.[/i
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7 Tries and 42 goals for Wakefield Trinity. Any tries or even conversions that stood out for you ?
[iI would probably say my first SL try, away at Gateshead Thunder in 1999, I think it was only my 3rd ever SL game and was given the kicking duties that night too and converted my own try, I was only 19 so that was pretty special.[/i
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We recently saw the debut of your son Joe against Leeds Rhinos. How much of an influence have you had on his career and how did it feel to see him make his 1st team debut ?
[iYes, that was pretty amazing seeing Joe out there. That made me very proud, he's worked really hard for it and dreamed about it since he was 8 when I first took him to play. Much like myself he has supported Wakey all his life so spent lots of time on the terracing watching.
As far as influencing him goes all I've done is support him throughout and drive him to training lots and lots of times. I did coach him for a couple of years up until he was 11 but then stopped. His biggest influences have been all his coaches up at Oulton Raiders and then the Wakefield youth set up who've been great for the last 4 years through Jamie Field etc in Scholarship and Mash and team in the Academy.[/i
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The same Sunday also saw you and others take part in a sponsored walk for MNDA. Can you share how that went, why it was setup and if there is anything else planned in the future ?
[iYeah the walk was great and did really well for the charities. It all started recently when me and Mart were asked to join the past players committee team alongside Lee Robinson, Gaz Spencer and Stu Dickens, we are trying really hard at creating a place for all players past and present so they know when their career ends there not alone. I for one and know lots of other rugby lads feel a bit abandoned when they retire. I'm really enjoying this. The walk was just planned to try to promote some positivity around the place and bring as many of the lads together as we could, were trying to arrange more events including past & present players and all the fans. I really think this is the start of something a bit special down at Wakey and lots to look forward to.[/i
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How has your career panned out post rugby league ?
[iI now run St Johns Health & Fitness alongside Mart, its a small gym in Wakefield. I also help out coaching local team Oulton Raiders U15s who my middle son Tommy plays for, also help from time to time down at the Scholarship at Wakefield. I love being involved and seeing the next generation of players coming through the ranks. I had the pleasure of coaching Oli Pratt and Harvey Smith in Scholars. Super talented those two guys but many more are coming through too. Exciting times ahead.[/i
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Let’s finish with a chance to reflect on the players you played with in your career. Give us your dream team 1-13 of players that you played with ?
[iOoh this is a tough one…… but here goes…..This has to be a mixture of championship and SL as some of the boys i played with pre “99 but would have been amazing in SL too.
Steve Prescott
Neil Law
Justin Brooker
Gaz Ellis
Josh Bostock
Garen Casey
Brad Davies
Franny Stevenson
Roy Southernwood
Gary Lord
Andy Fisher
Gary Price
Willie Poching[/i
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And from that team, who would captain it and why ?
[iRoy Southernwood all day long. Total leader who everyone respected. Top bloke.[/i
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And to end with, anything you would like to add to the Wakefield fans out there ?
[iFrom a fellow fan who was just lucky enough to pull our amazing jersey on and play in front of you all you really are the best fans going, the support you give home and away is more important than you realise. Every player I have ever played alongside loves the noise you create and we all wear that badge with pride. Please keep it up. Lastly, let's really get behind Mash and boys this year. I have been involved in the game for some years now and have never come across anyone so hard working and more loyal to our club than him. Trust me, he's a coach for the future. I really hope he gets a chance to prove himself going forward.
Thanks for the chance to share these bits with you, I could go on all day about our club but kept it as short as possible for you.
Cheers
Gray[/i

Damien Blanch

Let's start with Damien Blanch the player. Tell us about your junior days and why you played Rugby League ?
[iI started playing footy when I was 14. My mum never let me play growing up! Played in the Penrith competition, and made my first rep/development squad when I was 16 – which was coached by Mick Potter. From there, I played SG Ball (U18’s), then U20’s then reserve grade for Penrith. I played a few trial games for First grade, but never actually got an official NRL game. Dave Woods was a coach in one of these teams, and offered me a start at Castleford in 2005 which is when I first moved to the UK.[/i
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You started off with Castleford and Widnes before a move to Wakefield. How did the move to Wakefield come about ?
[iI had a phone call from John Kear about 2 weeks out from the Super league promotion Grand Final when I was playing for Widnes against Castleford. He offered me a deal to sign for Wakefield, pending it was signed before the Grand Final was played. It was a hard choice to make as I was happy at Widnes, but Super League was my goal and it was guaranteed – but Widnes making it to Super League wasn’t. I agreed to Wakefield’s deal and was stoked to have my future secured. Ultimately it was the correct decision, as not only did we lose the Grand Final, Widnes announced the were going into administration before we even got on the bus following the loss.[/i
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Can you remember your Wakefield 1st team debut, who it was against and how it went ?
[iI had a delayed start with Wakefield, as I tore my Labrum in my shoulder during a trial game against Featherstone and required surgery with a 3 month recovery. So I didn’t make my debut until later against Harlequins at home. I started off the bench as our current wingers (I believe it was Luke George and Paul Reilly) were playing really well. But all in all the shoulder went well and we won the game.[/i
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Let's look at 2008 and mainly the Challenge Cup Semi Final in that year. What were your memories of that season and you grabbed a couple of tries in the Semi Final as well as we looked to come back from a terrible start. How did that game go for you as well ?
[iThat game was one of the highlights (and saddest!) of my career. We started the game terribly being 18-0 down after 10mins. Trying to claw your way back in a semi final (regardless of the opposition) is extremely difficult, but especially against Hull FC who were a top side that year. I was lucky enough to score a couple that game, and was millimetres from a 3rd that was eventually disallowed – I’m still dirty about this one to this day!! We were a great, well gelled side at that point in the season, and did really well to get ourselves back into the game, but inevitably we just gave them too much of a head start. Great memories of that week though, that even a heartbreaking loss can't take away.[/i
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What were your highs and lows during the remainder of your time with Wakefield ?
[iAs I said, that challenge cup game was up there. We had some great Derby games, Magic weekends & trips away to Catalans which I really do look back on as some of the best times in my career. I had my fair share of injuries at Wakefield though, the worst tearing my ACL in 2009 which was by far the lowest point of my time at Wakefield – and my Career.[/i
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You were clearly making a name for yourself with your try scoring exploits and a move to Catalans happened in 2011. How did those years go in the French sunshine ?
[iI was nervous about moving to France. In reality after coming back from my knee surgery I was actually looking to move back to Sydney in 2010 following the season. I had a call from Trent Robinson who had been signed as the 2011 Catalan coach. Trent said he was putting together a team with a heap of new players and wanted me to be a part of it. It really was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I couldn’t turn down – and to this day have never regretted it. I had a really good experience in France with the culture & rugby in general. Not to say it was any better than my time in Wakefield/Widnes/Castleford, but just completely different and enjoyable.[/i
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You also represented Ireland in the 2008 & 2013 World Cups. How did those tournaments go for you and for Ireland ?
[iBoth the 2008 & 2013 World Cups were fantastic. I always enjoyed being in camp, and these kind of occasions always brought the best out of my Rugby. We had great mentors (if you could call them that!) in Barry McDermott & Terry O’Connor who really got behind the teams. 08’ was probably a more successful tournament as we progressed to the ¼ finals when we were not expected to progress from the pool stages against Tonga and Samoa. 2013 was special to play against England in front of a full house in Huddersfield, and against Australia in Limerick – which was my last ever professional game. Once again, great memories.[/i
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Wikipedia says 178 appearances and 114 tries in your career over here in the UK (& France). Can you give us your top 3 tries that you have scored in your career ?
[iMy most memorably 3 would have been:
Against Huddersfield at ‘The Shay’ when I dived for the corner playing for Catalan.
The above mentioned try I scored from a kick from Broughy in the Challenge Cup
I got an intercept in a final against Leeds at home for Catalan on the half time buzzer. We had worked on this all week so it was great to pull this off after recognising it through videos.[/i
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And what about Damian Blanch now, career wise after rugby ? What do you do and what keeps you busy ?
[iI live in Wollongong on the south coast of Sydney, beautiful place. I have 3 Kids who keep my hair from growing back. My eldest son Jesse is 14 and playing his first year of Rugby this year which I am a trainer for and really enjoy watching him. My 2 younger girls both play soccer. I'm a Project manager for a Tower Crane/Construction company in Sydney which I really enjoy. My wife and I miss travelling but try to see as much as we can between kids and work.[/i
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Let’s finish with a chance to reflect on the players you played with in your career. Give us your dream team 1-13 of players that you played with ?
[iMatty Blaymire
Paul Reilly
Tony Martin
Steve Menzies
Aaron Murphy
Scott Grix
Scott Dureau
Adam Watene
Brad Drew
Danny Nutley
Louis Anderson
Ben Roarty
Lopini Paea[/i
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And from that team, who would captain it and why ?
[iProbably Grixy. Smart footy head, and knew when to work and on and off the field![/i
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And to end with, anything you would like to add to the Wakefield fans out there ?
[iWakefield was the club that backed me as a fringe Super League player and gave me a chance which I am forever grateful for. I loved everything about the club from the fans, office staff, sponsors (who I still speak to this day) right through to Bathy who helped me get my apprenticeship as a groundsman on the Bellevue Pitch & Mrs B who made us the best lunches every Friday.
Cheers
Damien ![/i

Would love a Ray Price one.

...keep an eye out for the podcasts

Looking forward to it, such a legend in my eyes, toughest player bar none.