This week’s episode of Behind The Roar was recorded live at Accor Stadium before Easter Monday’s match against Parramatta Eels, featuring former Wests Tigers players Chris Lawrence and Pat Richards.
Behind The Roar drops every Wednesday afternoon, available on Apple, Spotify and YouTube.
Just as they did in their respective careers, the boys cover plenty of ground. With almost 600 first-grade games between them, they’ve seen a lot, learned a lot, and hurt a lot. Now retired but still heavily involved with the club, both are very happy with their lot in life.
Lawrence is one of those rare one-club players who made his NRL debut under Tim Sheens as a 17-year-old while still at school. He played 253 games over 15 seasons at Wests Tigers and fought his way back from not one but two of the most horrific injuries imaginable.
He talks about the ‘loneliness’ and ‘isolation’ he felt on his long road to recovery, offering sage advice to other injured athletes about the ‘little wins’ which soon add up.
Richards also knows a thing or two about rehab having undergone 17 surgeries in his 17 seasons in both the NRL and Super League. He holds Lawrence in high esteem and speaks admirably of his former teammate’s physical toughness and mental fortitude.
Both players talk about their pathways to the NRL, and the role their schooling played in reaching the top-flight. The schools they attended are still going strong and still providing a steady stream of young talent to the NRL, and to Wests Tigers.
Richards recounts a couple of iconic Easter Monday moments that unfolded at Accor Stadium back in 2014 and 2015.
He also talks about his yearning desire to return to Wests Tigers after walking away from the NRL following the club's maiden premiership in 2005.
We touch on each player’s nickname, why Lawrence is known as ‘Rowdy’ and why Richards answers to ‘Iceman’.
There’s also a couple of yarns Rowdy tells about his NRL debut. When coach Tim Sheens said, “Looks like you’re playing kid.”
And then the flight home after that win over the Broncos in Brisbane, after scoring a try on debut. Chris had a HSC exam the very next morning but when he pulled out the books to do a bit of mid-flight study, he was quickly pulled into line!
All that and more in this week’s edition of Behind The Roar.
