By STEVE MASCORD via League Weekly
WALES coach John Kear has called on World Cup officials to protect the health of his players in sweltering Port Moresby, warning they could end up like “boxers on the ropes after 15 rounds”.
The Dragons kick off their campaign against Papua New Guinea at 3pm local time at Oil Search Stadium this Saturday; the forecast is expected to be 30 degrees Celsius.
Water breaks have been allowed for if temperatures and humidity reach a certain level and Kear wants a sympathetic reading of the regulations.
“I’ve never been to the place but I’m really, really looking forward to it,” Kear told League Weekly at yesterday’s Brisbane media launch.
“The heat is an issue. There’s got to be (drinks breaks). You’ve got to look at player welfare, haven’t you?
“The European players, certainly, won’t have experienced anything like that.
“I think they’ll reach that (threshold) temperature pretty easily in PNG but again, it’s a matter of player welfare. You’ve got to look after the players so they’re fully hydrated.
“And obviously, if you look after the players they’ll give a better spectacle.
“You don’t want them like boxers on the ropes after 15 rounds where they can’t throw a punch. You want them fresh and you want them able to exhibit the skills of rugby league as well as they possibly can.”
Kear says he has done as much reconnaissance as possible, including a review for the hotel from Wales-cum-Australia forward Tyson Frizell.
“We have got Rhys Williams who’s played there, Matty Seamark has played there. They’ve tipped us up.
“I’ve spoken to Jason Demetriou and Sam Obst as well. Sam’s played over there and Jason’s coached against the PNG team.”
Discussing his ambitions for the tournament, Kear said: “Everyone’s got different goals. We realise Wales hasn’t won a World Cup since 2000. That’s a long time. In 2008 we didn’t qualify and in 2013 we didn’t win a game.
“We’d feel it a success getting out of the group stages.”
Meanwhile, Scotland coach Steve McCormack has played down concerns for the Bravehearts after a 50-14 belting by NSW Country Under 23s in a warm-up match last Friday.
“I think the key to it is that we just stepped off a plane, really,” said McCormack. “We got treated like royalty by the NSW Country Rugby League and we played a few young fellas.
“There were a few students in there as well. We’ve seven or eight players who didn’t play in that game.
“It was good hitout. A few of our players who haven’t played in weeks played in it and overall we came out unscathed.”
The Bravehearts kick off their World Cup on Sunday against Tonga at Cairns’ Barlow Park. McCormack’s side is without big-name NRL stars Lachlan Coote, Kane Linnett, Peter Wallace and Euan Aitken.
“We’ve got a lot of young players who’ll have the experience of a lifetime,” he said.
“It’s a big tournament they’ll have to step up in against three teams that are world class.”
The Bravehearts are also grouped with New Zealand and Samoa.
