Captain's 'special' thanks for Samoan 'sacrifices'

2 years ago 81

Samoa skipper Junior Paulo has thanked his stars for the "sacrifices" made during their historical Rugby League World Cup campaign.

Despite losing the last 30-10 to the Kangaroos successful the aboriginal hours of Sunday greeting (AEDT), Paulo said he'd told his players heading into the lucifer to beryllium arrogant of their achievements immoderate the outcome.

"We spoke astir it during the week, giving ourselves each accidental astatine the extremity of this game," helium said.

"We knew that immoderate happened, we were each going to beryllium capable to assistance our heads up and beryllium proud.

"That's each I wanted for these men. It's a peculiar clump and unluckily the travel comes to an extremity and we each spell our abstracted ways."

Paulo's men headed into the last arsenic dense underdogs, and performed powerfully passim the clash. They trailed conscionable 14-0 astatine fractional time, and had aboriginal opportunities to combat backmost aft Angus Crichton was sinbinned aboriginal successful the 2nd half.

Taylan May looked to person pegged backmost the pb erstwhile helium crossed successful the corner, but the last walk from Joseph Suaali'i - which bounced respective times connected its mode to May - was judged forward.

The Kangaroos past fought backmost against the tide, with Cameron Murray scoring portion inactive a antheral down.

From determination the Samoans were ne'er truly successful the clash, with precocious tries to Stephen Crichton and Brian To'o small much than consolation.

Paulo said the sides show passim the World Cup would capable him and his teammates with pridefulness for years to come.

"From the start, we've been aiming to physique to wherever we wanted to get to and we're reaping the rewards for the sacrifices players person made," Paulo said.

"But successful history, those names volition ever beryllium alongside each different and we tin look backmost and beryllium arrogant of what we've been capable to do.

"This is portion of the crushed we chose to correspond our heritage. We not lone correspond ourselves, our unit and our people, it's besides astir the tone of what Samoa means to us.

"(The Kangaroos) are a large squad and defended good but we didn't instrumentality our opportunities.

"A mates of finishes astatine the extremity of our sets fto america down astatine the extremity of the 10-minute period.

"But seeing the boys observe our tries, seeing (Crichton) people that try, contempt wherever we were connected the scoreboard, it meant everything to us.

"It showed however arrogant we are of each different and however peculiar this radical is."

Coach Matt Parish said helium "couldn't beryllium prouder" of the group.

"The effect is disappointing but surely not the effort oregon committedness of these guys," helium said.

"We astir apt ne'er got adjacent capable to enactment capable unit connected them oregon instrumentality our chances similar we should have.

"We needed a batch of things to spell close for america today. We were down to 19 players - that's each we had near successful the squad. We had blokes retired of presumption and they were truthful courageous against a large side.

"This radical is precise peculiar and it's humbling to spot however they've touched truthful galore radical astir the world."

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