When Jason Clark told friends and team-mates he was leaving Australia for England, they asked him if he was mad.
However, the Warrington forward admits heading to the UK was one of the best choices he’s made after settling into the culture.
But he was initially left questioning if he’d made the right call after natives of his new land questioned his decision too.
“Whenever I said I was coming out here the question was always ‘why’.
“And then the English asked the same question too!
“But I’ve loved it. My dad has been over five times in 18 months which has helped but I think he thinks it’s great too.
“I’ve really enjoyed it, I fell on my feet signing here, the town is amazing, the people in it, the club. Simon Moran, Stuart Middleton, the coaches and the staff have all been tremendous, you couldn’t meet a better set of people.”
Clark, who has been helping out at a food bank during the pandemic, cited the club’s hospitality as a major factor in his ability to be happy.
“Kylie Leuluai is the player welfare manager and he is very hands-on with all the players, maybe because he can understand what we’re going through.
“We have Doreen, who has been at the club for 30 years and she is willing to help any way she can.
“One of the board members, Mike Lomax, I’d heard really good things about before I came over, he’s a really great friend now.
“It’s not just rugby, you’ve got your family and kids too and they’re the key for me. As they say, happy wife, happy life! But the club is great.”
Clark, like the rest of his peers, now wants to return to the field, but he admits finding the right scenario isn’t easy.
“I can imagine the Super League have been in touch with the NRL, but it’s hard.
“I can imagine they’ve worked on so many solutions, but what it does come down to is financial. They’re trying to look after themselves and keep the club alive, but they might have to cut the games down, maybe make it 24 games, but also I know it’s easy to say cut the games down when clubs rely on playing those games.
“It’s so hard, I think about different things and solutions all the time, but then you think they’ve got to juggle this and that which makes it unrealistic.”
