Kruise Leeming reveals "biggest fear" on joining Wigan Warriors after being "pleasantly surprised" ……

[josie andrews]

….about certain aspect of Super League club

KRUISE LEEMING has admitted that he had one major fear about joining Wigan Warriors before penning a four-year deal at the Lancashire club.

Having joined from NRL side Gold Coast Titans, Leeming is keen to continue the club’s achievements in recent years which has included a Challenge Cup triumph in 2022 and a League Leaders’ Shield and Grand Final success in 2023.

However, the Eswatini-born hooker has revealed that he ‘feared’ that the Wigan players would not have that continued motivation to win another Super League title after their success last season – a fear that has quickly been extinguished following Leeming’s “seamless transition”.

“I’ve loved it, it’s been a seamless transition. Obviously being away with the pre-season camp, it’s fast tracked me getting to know the lads as I’ve been around them a lot,” Leeming told League Express.

“It’s been what I thought it would be and more really. The humbleness of the group even after coming off the back of a Grand Final win last year is amazing and is probably a massive factor into why they’ve been so successful over the years.

“It’s also continued success, not just every now and then. They seem to be successful for a long period of time and that is down to the humbleness of the group.

“That was one of my biggest fears when I came to the club, the motivation of the club after winning the Grand Final – do they want to win another or rest on their laurels? But I’ve been pleasantly surprised in that respect.”

Leeming believes that the Wigan club prides itself on bringing in good people first, rather than good players.

“I’ve touched on it before. The culture is a driving factor of the club and we have to be a good person first and then that leads into being a good rugby player.

“I don’t know this for certain but I’m very sure if you are good rugby player but not a good person then you wouldn’t be a Wigan player.

“If you spoke to any of the new lads, it would be exactly what I’ve said about how welcoming the club has been, how humble the group has been and how good the culture is, it’s hard to not enjoy it.

“We work hard as well and another part of the ingredients of being a good player and having a good culture is working hard. That sounds daunting at first but you grow to love and enjoy it.

“I think if you asked any of the other new signings then they would have a very similar opinion.”



https://www.totalrl.com/kruise-leeming- ... ague-club/

[josie andrews]

Kruise Leeming on rejecting offer to join Wigan instead, why he chose the Warriors and time at Leeds Rhinos

KRUISE LEEMING is one of a cohort of new signings ready to take Super League by storm with the Wigan Warriors.

After a short spell in the NRL with Gold Coast Titans in the latter half of the 2023 season, Leeming is back in Super League and raring to go, having signed a four-year deal with the Warriors.

It’s no mean feat that the Lancashire club were able to persuade the Eswatini-born hooker to make the move back to the UK – especially when considering that the Titans offered Leeming a deal to stay in Australia.

So why did Leeming make the move to Wigan and turn down the chance to stay in the NRL with the Gold Coast Titans?

“It was the fact of playing in a champion environment with a lot of champions – that really excited me and I think where I am at in my career now, that’s what I’ve been longing for, to win something,” Leeming told League Express.

“I had a little bit of success at Leeds which was great but any player wants to win and I felt like being at Wigan would give me the best chance of that as well as growing my personal development.

“I could have stayed in the NRL with the Titans but, for me as a player, the most important thing is where I get my personal development and that’s why I chose Wigan.”

Of course, Leeming left the Leeds Rhinos midway through the 2023 season after three-and-a-half years with the West Yorkshire club, with the 28-year-old handing in a transfer request.

However, the 2020 Challenge Cup winner felt he had to grasp the opportunity of an NRL deal with two hands and professes that it was “the perfect time” for him to go.

“It’s a great club and I had a great time there. I enjoyed it a lot and there were a great set of lads over there. I just got a chance to go to the NRL and I saw that as a good opportunity.

“I’d recommend anybody to go over there, 100 percent, it was a massive learning curve and a good thing to say that I have done.

“It was also a good time in my career to do it. I’m single and was 27 so it was the perfect time for me to go

https://www.totalrl.com/kruise-leeming- ... ds-rhinos/