Leka Halasima is still unfinished product in his NRL development. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
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NZ Warriors phenomenon Leka Halasima has returned to earth this week, despite a breathtaking 40-metres dash that snatched an unlikely victory for his team over Newcastle Knights last weekend.
The Auckland NRL side trailled into the final seconds of their visit to the Hunter Valley, when halfback Tanah Boyd attempted a long-range field goal for the win.
His kick was charged down, but the ball fell for Halasima, who powered his way to the tryline to break the hearts of Knights fans everywhere.
"We probably didn't play our best football, but we kept competing to the end and, fortunately, we had someone who's athletically gifted like Leka, who could come up with a play like that," reflected Warriors coach Andrew Webster.
This wasn't the first time the teenage second-rower had demonstrated his freakish tryscoring ability. Earlier in the season, he scored in three straight games and, only seven days earlier, he brushed off a couple of tacklers to grab the final try in a win over Wests Tigers at Mt Smart.
Halasima now has eight for the season, equalling Luke Metcalf as the Warriors' top tryscorer, and it seems only a matter of time before he takes that lead outright, with Metcalf permanently sidelined by injury.
Despite his exploits, which now thrust him into the forefront of NRL Rookie of the Year consideration, those around him insist he's back to business as usual on the training field.
"He's been good, very grounded," Webster insisted. "He's just trained probably the best he's trained and he's got real goals around the rest of his game.
Leka Halasima celebrates his gamewinning try against Newcastle Knights. Photo: David Neilson/Photosport
"We obviously took him off for a period to have a rest and he wants to be an 80-minute player, so he knows he's got lots of stuff to work on his game.
"Moments like that will naturally happen for the rest of his career, because he's gifted, but playing at that intensity for 80 minutes is his goal."
A prime example of the attention to detail required to take Halasima to the next level came even as he made another highlight defensive play in the first half, stopping Knights centre Fletcher Hunt in his tracks, with the tryline beckoning and a man open outside him.
"It was a good trysaving tackle and I'm really happy for him, but if you look at the play, he was late back and turned," Webster said.
"He was behind those guys [the defensive line] and ended up being in the right position at the right time. We want him to get in the line straight away.
"One moment of brilliance, but one moment to work on something. That's not me trying to keep him grounded - these are Leka's words.
"That was a great trysaving tackle, but there's other things he can work on."
Halasima, 19, began the season on the interchange, but was promoted into the starting line-up, when front-rower James Fisher-Harris strained a pectoral muscle (chest/shoulder) and Webster shuffled his pack.
The coach faces another tricky selection, when makeshift centre Kurt Capewell reclaims his specialist position in the second row, possibly at Halasima's expense.
"I think he's actually played his best football this year off the bench," Webster offered.
Halasima's teammates were stunned, but not greatly surprised by his heroics. Lock Erin Clark was on the bench, after cramping up late in the game.
"With a minute to go, we were behind, but I still thought we were going to win," he recalled. "When Leka got the ball at the back end of that game, I just knew.
"He's a freak and he's done it before, so it's not a fluke. We're quite lucky to have him in our team.
"He's just so talented, he's so young, but he's got a footy brain on him beyond his years. He's only fresh out of high school - it's exciting to see what the future holds for him.
"He keeps developing and he's eager to learn. He's going to turn into a great."
Demitric Vaimauga and Leka Halasima celebrate a try against Wests Tigers. Photo: Brett Phibbs/www.photosport.nz
Clark - a former teenage prodigy who strayed off the NRL career path, before returning to the Warriors this season - is Halasima's roommate on road trips.
"Around certain people, he's quiet, but if you know him, he's got a joke in him," Clark said.
"He's quite level-headed and humble. Anyone else, their head would blow up, but he's the same Leka he was at the start or even before he debuted.
"He just sleeps - he's got no kids, so he can sleep all day."
Fellow youngster Jacob Laban, 21, will play alongside Halasima for at least another four seasons, after the pair extended their current Warriors contracts in May. The club has also tied up Demitric Vaimauga, 21, through 2028, so the core of its pack is in good hands for years to come.
"I think Demitric said it a while back, people who know [Halasima] now, that's the stuff he was doing before," Laban said. "Just running amok and being himself.
"When you get into the professional grade, you're getting told what to do all the time and sometimes you have to do that stuff.
"Him just backing himself and doing things like that is pretty cool to see."
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