Whitehead: We expected to be in the fat club

ELLIOTT Whitehead says Canberra’ World Cup players “probably expected” to be in coach Ricky Stuart’s so-called fat squad.
Whitehead, New Zealanders Jordan Rapana and Joe Tapine plus Samoans Josh Papalii and Joey Leilua are doing extras twice a week after coming back from national duty overweight.
Speaking to rugby-league.com, Whitehead jokes that Rapana “threw me under a bus” by talking about the fat squad in an interview.
“It’s tough to stay in shape and we probably expected to be in (the fat squad),” Whitehead said.
“We’re all not too far away from getting out of there now, to where the club want us. Probably another week or so and I reckon most of the boys will be out of there.
“We didn’t come back in too bad shape but from the holiday we were just a little bit over where we should have been.
“One will be swimming, one will be doing some cardio at the local gym that we use and on Saturday we do boxing with the Australian boxing coach who’s at the AIS (Australian Institute Of Sport). He makes us get a good sweat up on a Saturday morning.
” “No, they didn’t expect us to come back in the shape where they want us for the first game of the season. It’s always nice to have some time off and spend it with your family and get away and take your mind off of rugby.”
Whitehead also speaks out strongly in favour of the Test against New Zealand in Denver on June 23, which has been held up by NRL clubs reluctant to release players.
“For us as an international team, we really need that mid-season game. I think it showed against Samoa last year, just getting the boys together and getting some combinations,” Whitehead says.
“Probably in the years before we never had that. It really helped us going into the World Cup.
“The Australian teams, they have Origin and that way they can all meet up because all based here whereas as an England team we’re based some in Super League and some in the NRL.
“I think it really needs to go ahead. I know some of the NRL clubs aren’t happy with it and I can understand why …
“Even if we play over in Australia again, the English boys still have to travel. There’s a lot of um-ing and ah-ing but hopefully they sort it out and it goes ahead.”