NRL fans have gotten their first look at the turf which will be used for the Allegiant Stadium season opening games – and, at a first glance, there’s just one problem.
The $US2 billion venue uses state of the art technology allowing them to switch between different surfaces, with a retractable tray hosting both grass and artificial turf.
The local college football team, UNLV, uses turf which is rolled up and stored under the concrete floor of the venue while the NFL’s Raiders use a grass field.
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Rolling the grass outside allows it to receive natural sunlight plus be watered.
That’s why when Fox League got a first look at the surface for the two Vegas games this coming Sunday, it was out in the open.
Markings from the recent Super Bowl were still faintly visible as the league lines and numbers were drawn.
The grass will be rolled back into the venue on Friday (AEDT).
WHY ROOSTERS GUN NEARLY MISSED VEGAS
Roosters star Joey Manu has revealed he almost didn’t make the trip over to the US after welcoming his first child.
Manu says he was given the option by the Roosters to stay in Australia with his wife and newborn daughter, before finally hopping on a flight to Los Angeles on Tuesday.
“I’m really happy and sad at the same time to be leaving them. I wanted to make sure my wife and baby were in good spirits and they were happy with me leaving,” Manu told Nine News.
“She’s lovely. She’s cute as. I didn’t want to leave this morning, to be honest. I was struggling to leave. It will be all worth it.
“I’m looking forward to getting over there and getting back to business.”
If Manu was to miss the historic clash against the Broncos, the Roosters would have been down two first choice outside backs with winger Dom Young ruled out with a neck injury.
For a few moments there, that seemed a very real possibility.
“There were a few days there I didn’t think I’d actually go,” he said.
“Even after (the birth), I was like, ‘I’m not too sure’. But talking to ‘Robbo’ (Roosters coach Trent Robinson, and some people in my family, and my wife, it worked out well – here I am on the plane getting ready.”
BRONCOS FLYER’S IMPRESSIVE NFL DISPLAY
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. It’s a well-known proverb that the Broncos have seemed to adopt during their time in the USA.
Footage has emerged from a Broncos training session this week of a few players practising the game of American football, with Brisbane flyer Tristan Sailor showing that a career switch could perhaps be on the cards.
The short 18 second clip from The Courier Mail’s Peter Badel shows Sailor line up at wide receiver against a Broncos teammate wearing a Los Angeles Rams helmet. The Broncos have been based in LA since arriving in the US, training at the Rams’ facility in Thousand Oaks.
Sailor shows off some terrific footwork to beat his defender, run up field and catch a touchdown pass from Broncos enforcer Martin Taupau to rapturous applause from Brisbane teammates.
It was a piece of agility that NFL wide receivers would have tipped their hat to. As some scouts would say, Sailor could make someone miss in a phone booth, meaning he can move well in a short space.
HOW EDDIE JONES SHAPED MANLY’S VEGAS CAMPAIGN
Former Wallabies coach Eddie Jones’ influence on the Sea Eagles Las Vegas camp has been revealed, with Anthony Seibold adopting his former colleague’s travel approach.
Seibold worked under Jones during his tenure as England’s rugby union head coach prior to his return to the NRL with Manly.
Having travelled around the world with the English side, Seibold learnt how to acclimatise to new conditions and adopted Jones’ methods when travelling.
“One of the things that we would do in rugby, wherever we’re playing their first Test match, we would go there about 10 days before,” Seibold said to the SMH.
“We’d have a graduated approach to recovery, to starting to get moving and restarting the engine.
“We copied that approach from England rugby. We have been heavily influenced by that experience. You saw it with Penrith’s travel to England, it’s tough, it’s not easy.
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“For all four teams, everyone’s got a different approach and it’s more than one way to skin a cat. We feel it’s the best approach for us.”
Jones’ tenure with the Wallabies was disastrous, failing to get out of the group stage in the 2023 World Cup in France.
However, Seibold revealed he still stays on contact with Jones who questions what the Sea Eagles have been attempting to achieve in pre-season.
“I know things didn’t go well for him here in Australia, but he has had a lot of success over a long period of time as an international coach,” Seibold said.
“He is someone I respect and regard highly. He’s very demanding to work for but I feel like I’m a better coach for having worked with Eddie. He’ll ring from time to time or I’ll shoot him a text message.
“He had a positive influence on me getting going again with coaching after Brisbane. I ended up coaching 15 Tests with England. That was a pretty unique experience.”
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