The Wests Tigers fans who pack the main grandstand at Leichhardt Oval take pride in heckling the visiting coach seated only metres away. Just ask Ivan Cleary.
But when the Tigers were running up a cricket score against North Queensland five weeks ago, those same supporters were almost on their best behaviour with Cowboys coach Todd Payten.
Maybe they felt sorry for the Cowboys. Maybe they will never forget what Payten did for their club as a player.
“The fans were pretty reasonable that night,” Payten said.
“A couple of players and staff told me the crowd were right into them during the warm-up, then again when they came off at half-time, and the general message was, ‘the only bloke welcome here is your coach’.”
The Cowboys crashed to a 66-18 defeat. It was embarrassing.
Funky Cowboy: Todd Payten rocks a shirt covered with his own face after the win over Souths.
Payten remembers a lot about that night. He remembers the lack of commitment shown by his players. He remembers it being so noisy beneath the old main grandstand, he had to delay the team speech until the players returned to the team hotel in town.
He also remembers feeling relieved he had caught up with fellow members of the 2005 Tigers’ premiership team at the flashy Totti’s restaurant a day before the game, and how awful it would have been had the get-together been a day after the match.
That night at Leichhardt will also not be forgotten when the Cowboys host the Tigers in Townsville on Saturday evening. It is close to a sell-out.
Vintage performance: The old scoreboard at Leichhardt Ovals says it all.Credit: NRL Photos
Since that thumping, the Cowboys pushed Parramatta all the way, then defeated title contenders Melbourne, Penrith and Souths.
It will go down as the turning point in their season.
“I questioned our commitment that night, and we didn’t talk straight after the game,” Payten said.
“We were staying at the Pullman opposite Hyde Park, so I told them to get their shit together, get on the bus and we’ll talk back at the hotel.
“We talked about our mental preparation. In those types of meetings, it’s pretty quiet, and I might ask some questions.
“The next two days there was a sombre feeling. We also had to go back to Leichhardt to train on the Tuesday and Thursday, which was not a bad thing to be fair, before we played Parramatta.
“We were always going to bounce back after such a soft outing.
Todd Payten (far right) enjoys lunch with members of the Wests Tigers 2005 premiership side last monthCredit: Instagram
“If I think of the turning point, it would be those two games. We had a red-hot crack against Parra, and that stoked that belief across the group again.”
The Cowboys are two points outside the eight and have two byes up their sleeve. Most of the all-star cavalry are also back on deck. They have already used 31 players this season. Last year they used 23, including one player, Tom Chester, who was only used for 11 minutes.
“Last year we had a lot of guys play rep footy, guys get contract extensions, myself included, then a lot of them went away to the World Cup and came back late,” Payten said.
“The perception around town was also different, which was a bigger challenge than I anticipated.
“Even when I played, if some guys were patted on the back time after time, and if you’re not mentally strong enough, you’d start to believe all the [hype]. There were probably a few guys here that were in that head space.
“We’ve had to keep reminding ourselves what works for us and what doesn’t.
“We’ve had a few wins and got some of that momentum back, but there’s still a lot of work to do. I’ve never questioned our ability. Footy is 90 per cent attitude.”
Payten has stopped frowning. The smile has even returned. If you want proof, check out video footage the club posted of the 44-year-old coach entering the sheds after last weekend’s win where he is wearing a T-shirt featuring his own face.
The shirt was designed by club doctor Chris Ball, who was reminded by Payten to lead by example in front of the players, “but is clearly a guy who is anti-authority”.
“Chris wore the shirt with my face on it, the shorts and socks on the plane down to Sydney – me wearing it in the sheds was the least I could do,” Payten said.
The coach is always welcome up north.
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