LACHLAN WALMSLEY has admitted to a combination of disbelief, relief and excitement after Wakefield Trinity booked their place in the Grand Final on Saturday for the first time in their history.
Australian Walmsley, who was making only his tenth appearance of the season, has become an integral part of the side in this play-off run.
The 28-year-old has scored seven tries this season, and although he failed to score against the Warriors, his carries from backfield and defensive efforts were second to none.
Walmsley, who can now look forward to the build-up this week and will soak up the atmosphere, admitted that Trinity deliberately targeted the side Adam Keighran would have been defending when he was in the sin bin – and that effectively won them the game.
“Well, we just targeted that edge, didn’t we,” he said.
“We got a lot of joy out of it. We got three tries down there, so we certainly didn’t miss our opportunity. It was good to see that we could make the most of it.”
“We had 25 minutes to go and we had just scored that third try after (Adam) Keighran was sinbinned.
“Once he got done and we scored three times, it was like ‘geez, we’re in with a chance to get to the Grand Final here’.
“I have to admit there is a little bit of relief in there, but a lot of excitement as well. We know we have a good chance next week. We will enjoy it for now but we’ll soon have our heads down for next weekend.
“There’s a lot of confidence in our playing group. It’s finally come together this year, the way that we’re playing. We had a couple of games that were a bit hit and miss, but today we were exceptional, especially in the second half.
“I think it was a pretty good game. In the big games like this, you’ve just got to make the most of the opportunities you get. So we’ll look forward to next week.”