Josh Reynolds reveals he had to plead with referee on NRL debut

Over the weekend Josh Reynolds made his long awaited return to the Canterbury Bulldogs as he played in their 15-14 win on his second debut after a stint with Hull FC in Super League.

Speaking after the game to the West Australian, Reynolds admitted he found it tough and was even forced to plead with the official after he was penalised.

“I was trying to tell myself that I wasn’t nervous today but I wasn’t hungry one bit and I’m always hungry on game day,” he said after Sunday’s 15-14 win.

“Deep down, in the back of my mind I knew I was a bit nervy.

“My first tackle I got called offside and they went straight through, so it wasn’t the greatest of starts.

“I actually gave the ref a bit of a … I wouldn’t call it a spray … but I said, ‘come on mate, I’ve been out of the game for 2000 days, give me a break. You’ve blown me a penalty first bloody thing!’

“I’m not going to lie, I was blowing. It’s a different beast in the middle but the boys got me through,” he said.

Meanwhile, teammate Reed Mahoney was full of praise for the halfback:

“His energy is infectious to the group and I think off the field as well, he’s been so good for the club. He’s brought back the core values of what this club stands for,” Mahoney said.

“It was so good to see him run out there and play some footy for the Bulldogs again.”