Hot Cairns beckons AFL TigersBrad Thompson
Thursday, July 7, 2011
The Cairns PostTHEY might be more accustomed to playing in the icy winter of Melbourne, but Matthew White says the temperature in Cairns will pose no problem for the Richmond Tigers.
White was in Cairns yesterday – spruiking the Tigers’ chances for their match against the Gold Coast Suns on July 16 – and in the process, lapping up the chance to escape a wintry Melbourne.
"The weather’s nice and warm here, that's for sure," he said. And he said his Tigers teammates would have no difficulty adjusting from the sometimes single-digit temperatures of Melbourne, to what could be close to 30C in just over a week’s time at Cazalys Stadium.
"We have a heat chamber at the club – we set it up to about 28C with 60 per cent humidity and slave away on a stationary bike," he said. "Then we get out of there and go into the freezing cold Melbourne weather."
White was adamant it would have his side well prepared for the Suns, who would be markedly more used to the warmer conditions – but he was well aware the newly established side warrants plenty of respect.
"They’re the ultimate underdogs," he said.
"They have one of best players in the AFL, a lot of good young talent and you can never write them off. They’ve
almost pushed some really good sides to breaking point."
Last week, the Tigers were demolished by 103 points by Carlton, a painful reminder they are still not completely there as a finals side.
"We’re not really looking at finals per se, for us we’re about development, I think we’ve got a lot to learn," White said.
It was just a quick stop-off in Cairns for White, talking up the game and having a light-hearted kick with a number of keen local AFL juniors, before heading back to Melbourne to put his bid forward for a spot in the side.
Earlier in the season, a knee injury curtailed White’s emergence as a handy midfielder, playing just six of his 38-game career this season. But as he nears peak fitness, and the injury behind him, he was hopeful of squeezing his way into the side.
Heath Molloy, 13, who co-captains the North Cairns under-14 side, couldn't hide his excitement for the much anticipated AFL fixture in Cairns.
"It's good for Cairns and AFL, and will be great for the junior players," he said.
http://www.cairns.com.au/article/2011/07/07/172725_local-sport-news.html
