Perenara possesses the same win-at-all-costs mentality that attracted the club to Cooper Cronk, which hasn’t been lost on those behind the deal. An effort player, respected so highly by his peers that he often leads the haka for the All Blacks despite not even starting in most of his Test appearances.
“If I was TJ, he’s been to World Cups, he’s done just about everything. Go play league. Enjoy it, man. Have a crack.”The alternative is to give up on his dream of returning to the All Blacks, for whom he has already played 67 Tests, and play rugby league for the rest of the year before returning to Japanese rugby on a lucrative deal.
But Kirwan insists it won’t be a simple transition. “The biggest challenge will be going from four tackles to 40 in a game,” the former code-hopper said. Perenara is friendly with several NRL players and communicates regularly with them. Josh Dugan revealed he messages with the Kiwi star, and Storm hooker Brandon Smith revealed onlast Sunday that Perenara first reached out to him in February for tips and pointers on rugby league.