'He believed in me': Why Warbrick chose to jump ship to the Storm 06:07

Well, last night, the Melbourne Storm had a 32 points to 14 win over the Parramatta Eels. And I thought it was only appropriate that Will Warbrick scored a try, given we're about to launch into our Olympic coverage of the Games of the 33rd Olympiad in Paris.

Of course, he once won a silver medal with the New Zealand Rugby Sevens team at the Tokyo Olympics. And when I was calling the game last night, I recognised and acknowledged the Olympic rings that he has on one of his forearms. And he was involved in one of the great tries last year in the semifinals to put the Melbourne Storm in the prelim final. And it was called brilliantly by Davey. He'll play the ball close to the goal line. Last play. Goes back to Munster. Munster with a cross-wheel kick. Warbrick coming. Warbrick had it. No, coming back.

Yeah, it was a great moment, no doubt in his career, but he's had so many great moments and I'm pleased to say he's on the line. G'day, Will. Hey, how's it going? Mate, very well. Congratulations on the win last night. I don't think it was one of the better performances from the Melbourne Storm, but still a very valuable two points to put your six points clear on top of the NRL ladder.

Yeah, it was a mixed game. Obviously, we're pretty happy with the result there and get the win. But, you know, probably a bit tougher than we hoped. You know, Parramatta came out to scrap and we sort of missed the mark a couple of times, especially with our starts. Will Cam must have returned from injury. Obviously, he's been out for a fair while with his groin, but he must have been happy to get through last night.

Yeah, I think he's pretty happy. He was up and about during the week, and then even today he's been very vocal and loud and energetic. So he's always good to have back in the side, and he has a huge influence on our team and us. He'd just be a pain in the butt. Well, he actually looked pretty fit, mate. Normally he's got a little bit of mud guts going on, but he actually looked pretty fit. He must have trained pretty hard while he was off, did he?

No, he definitely did. He worked pretty hard in the rehab crew there and the trainers back at the club, they definitely put him under the gun there. He worked hard and I think when he got back out on the field for training and stuff, we sort of seen what kind of shape he was in.

So, no, he slotted right back in. What about for yourself, Will? You had a massive game. I think anyone that had you in their fantasy team would be rubbing their mitts together. Over 300 metres, scored that try, of course. But, Levy just mentioned before how you came over from Rugby Sevens. You obviously played in the Olympics as well. But what about for you? How are you tracking at this point in the season and how are you enjoying your rugby league playing at Melbourne Storm?

Yeah, probably last night's game probably explains how I feel today. I'm pretty buggered and the legs are sore and when the boys told me sort of, you know, the stats and whatnot sort of gave me a reason for why I'm feeling pretty, uh, legs are aching today but, um, yeah, I'm enjoying it. Uh,

I was talking to someone last night actually after the game and was just talking about the sevens actually being played right now so it's quite crazy you know three years ago I was playing rugby sevens and was a part of the Olympics and now I'm at Melbourne Storm playing in NRL so it's been quite the journey I guess and I'm just enjoying it I love playing league I love playing for the Storm and I

I think when you're enjoying it and it's the main thing. So I'm enjoying my footy and yeah, just trying to learn as I go. Well, mate, I think there's a fair bit of the journey to go for you. What was the, why did you decide to change over to rugby league? What was the reasoning behind jumping from rugby to rugby league? Yeah, look, I was always probably looking to move on from sevens. I was probably looking more on the union side of things for fifteens, but yeah,

I guess I was just presented with the opportunity to try my hand in league. I wasn't too sure at the time until I spoke with Melbourne. It wasn't until I had a Zoom call with Craig

where he pretty much told me that he just believed I had what it took to become an NRL player, or he believed in me that I could make the change. So when I heard those words come out of his mouth, it sort of made my decision there to try my hand. Yeah, he's pretty convincing, isn't he? Mate, and your first season in the NRL was last year, right?

You actually won the... Did you win the Dele M rookie of the year or a nomination? Sorry. Nomination. Yeah, sorry. But you also got the Storm rookie and also back of the year honours. Like, it's not a bad effort when some of the backs you've got in that club, and I know Pappenhauser didn't play all year, but you got Pappenhauser, Hughes and Munster there and you won back of the year. It's a fair effort. Yeah, it's pretty crazy to think. I think a few of those boards had injuries throughout the season, so that probably helps. But, yeah,

Yeah, no, I had, I guess, a pretty good season last year and I think it just comes back down to enjoying it. I sort of,

I know probably learning the game as the season went on. The NRL season is very tough. I found out the hard way last year and I think I'm probably a bit more experienced now coming into this season. So, yeah, I'm just enjoying the journey and the process of just trying to get better and it helps being at a club like the Storm and the teammates I have as well. Well,

I've made the point this week, Will, and plenty of people have said it over the years, how the Melbourne Storm have been able to continue to turn great players into superstars is breathtaking when you think about some of the calibre of players they've lost over the years. Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Greg Inglis, Cooper Cronk, the list goes on. You're one of those players doing a remarkable job, mate. Congratulations on the win last night, and I'm sure you'll be tuned in to the Olympic Games over the next couple of weeks. Appreciate you joining us.

Thanks for having me. Good on you, Will. That's Will Warbrick from the Melbourne Storm, their winger. And he scored a try last night in their 32 points to 14 win over Parramatta.