NSW Waratahs Head Coach Dan McKellar is confident they will provide fans a “reason to get behind” the team for the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific that starts next month.
Speaking to media on Thursday at the NSW Waratahs base at Daceyville in Sydney, McKellar lauded how his squad has trained, especially since Monday when teammates from the 2024 Wallabies returned to the Super Rugby Pacific franchise.
“They're just excited to be back,” McKellar said of the returning NSW Waratahs players.
“They've obviously been watching what the boys have been doing here and have been training hard …
"They knew they needed to come back in a condition where they would slot in without the issues.
"Their experience and their voice also bring a whole lot of energy with it, and training has certainly gone up again, which is exciting.”
McKellar said he is loving the challenge of steering the NSW Waratahs back to its place as a major rugby power after finishing last on the Super Rugby Pacific ladder last year.
“I was genuinely interested in this and excited about it because of the talent that's available,” McKellar said.
“Look at the facility that we work in every day, [at a] beautiful stadium; and there's a rugby community in New South Wales … it's crying out to get behind a team.
“You can see that simply through the Shute Shield and the crowds they get at club rugby. So, we've just got to give them a reason to get behind us.”
McKellar urged fans to understand that while the NSW Waratahs squad is talented, it will take time to reach its potential.
“It's going to take some time,” McKellar said.
“This group has never played a game of rugby together, and we've never coached them in a game of rugby yet … the majority of them. So, we need to be patient.
“But the most impressive thing [about the squad] has been their attitude and character.”
Asked what his objective for the NSW Waratahs is, McKellar said: “That we turn up tomorrow to be better than we were today, and the following day we do the same.
“That's all I want. I just want us to turn up and get better every day. If we do that as staff, as players, then we'll put ourselves in a position to get some positive outcomes.”
McKellar was all praise for marquee NSW Waratah signing, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii who joined the Waratahs this week from the Wallabies with others.
McKellar said he has an idea of where he might play Suaalii, but kept his cards close to his chest, saying with a smile: “I've got some ideas, but I'll keep it as a surprise for now.”
Asked what impresses him most about Suaalii, McKellar said it: “Is his desire to want to work hard on his game and his character.
“He clearly comes from a really good family. He's the first on the field [at training]. He's the last off it.
"I've noticed about him within any drill, he competes. He competes hard.
“If any rugby player has that desire and that work ethic, they'll get the best out of themselves. He's obviously blessed with a whole lot of talent on top of that.”
Suaalii has enjoyed training this week at the NSW Waratahs. “We've come in … got stuck in straight … training three times a day. It’s been tough, but it's been good,” he said.
Suaalii understands the expectation in him and all the NSW Waratahs squad that boasts a star-studded line-up. But he does not allow that expectation to become a burden.
“We just want to win; so, by winning the day first,” he said. “We're training hard and getting stuck into the process of training hard every day.
“You know the results will come after that.”
As for expectations he has of himself, Suaalii said: “I just want to be my best every day, every time I step on the training field, just competing and having that highest standard.
“I put the most pressure on myself. Anything external doesn't really faze me.”
Suaalii played rugby at The King’s School in Sydney before joining NRL side, the Roosters until he returned to rugby last year in time for the Wallabies Spring tour.
Now he is ready to put his all into the NSW Waratahs’ 2025 Super Rugby Pacific campaign.
Suaalii is also ready to play in any position that McKellar wants him to fill. “I don't have a preferred position,” Suaalii said. “I'll play anywhere where Dan wants me to play.
“I just love playing the game of rugby. Anywhere I can fit on the field, I'm ready to go.”
The NSW Waratahs start with a Round 1 home game against the Highlanders at Allianz Stadium at Moore Park, Sydney on Friday, 14 February. Tickets are on sale at Ticketek.
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