Lewis Dodd intends to, belatedly, make an impression on Wayne Bennett.
Given Dodd is the club’s new halfback, imported from the English Super League on a three-year deal purportedly worth $2.1 million, there may not be a more important member of the South Sydney roster during Bennett’s second coming at the club.
Not that you could tell from their first meeting.
On his first day at Heffron Park, while lying on a massage table, Bennett sauntered over to the newbie.
Bennett: “How are ya? What’s your name?”
Dodd: “Lewis.”
Bennett: “Lewis who?”
Dodd: “Dodd.”
Bennett: “Ah, you’re the Pommie.”
It may not have been the red-and-green carpet treatment, but Dodd can see the funny side.
“I heard about him in the past, they told me a lot of stories about him and I knew he was coming in,” Dodd said of the interaction that went viral, during a Rabbitohs sponsorship announcement with Wahu on Maroubra Beach on Saturday.
“I was excited and I was nervous and thought, ‘Oh, no, what’s gonna happen here?’ And then obviously what happened happened.
“It was funny, I enjoyed it. It was one of them moments of, ‘Oh, I’m one of them players that have a story about Wayne Bennett’ … it was a good introduction to him.”
Bennett may or may not know who Dodd is, but the impact he could potentially have on the NRL should not be understated. Still only 22 years old, Dodd has already won a premiership for Super League side St Helens, represented his country and caught the attention of Australian aficionados when he kicked the match-winning, extra-time field goal in the 2023 World Club Challenge clash against local champions Penrith.
However, the great unknown is whether he will be able to handle the pressure and scrutiny that comes with wearing the No.7 jersey at one of the biggest clubs in the NRL.
Lewis Dodd has starred for St Helens in the English Super League.Credit: Getty Images
“You have to do your role consistently, and you have to take the brunt of it,” he said.
“If the team is going well, you get the plaudits, and if the team is going bad, the halfback will get the downfall of that.
“That’s the bit I enjoy most about being a halfback – you lead the team and you are responsible for what the team do. That’s sort of what excites me.
“I’ve got to learn the NRL because it is a little bit different to the Super League, but that’s what excites me. That’s one of the main reasons I came over, because I know I’ll be a better player.”
The Rabbitohs have been unable to settle on a halfback since Adam Reynolds departed four years ago. Dodd is likely to get first crack, but will face competition from Jamie Humphreys and Jye Gray.
It’s a chance for Dodd to find out whether he belongs in the world’s premier rugby league competition.
“That’s what it is,” he said. “It’s that moment where you’re nervous and excited, and you’ve got butterflies in your stomach, and you think, ‘Sould I be here?’
“Having that pressure – money can’t buy that feeling. That feeling where if it goes right, it’s the best feeling ever. If it goes wrong, it’s the worst feeling ever.
“That’s why you play the game, and I’m lucky enough I get to do that on a regular basis.”
New South Sydney halfback Lewis Dodd.Credit: Steven Siewert
Even before he arrived, critics were questioning Dodd’s signing. Within months of committing to Souths, he was dropped by St Helens.
“It was obviously tough, no one likes to be dropped, no one wants to be left out,” he said.
“That’s also rugby league, that’s also life – not everything’s gonna go your way.
“There’s two ways to go: you can either sulk and moan and complain and blame other people, or you can figure out what went wrong and how to fix it, and you can go all-in on improving.
Riding the wave: Rabbitohs recruit Lewis Dodd.Credit: Steven Siewert
“The club were honest with me and I knew where I stood and how to improve. I just tried to do that as best I can.
“I tried to get back into the side, which I did towards the back end [of the season].
“Obviously we didn’t go out on the highest of highs, but you learn a lot about yourself in those moments as a person.
“I didn’t enjoy it at the time. It was definitely something that I look back on and be a bit grateful for, in a weird way, because you definitely learn a lot about yourself and improve as a person.”
Dodd’s World Club Challenge heroics proved a catalyst to test himself in the NRL. Now he will have the chance to more frequently test himself against the likes of Penrith playmaker Nathan Cleary.
“They are moments that it’s pretty much like a fairytale,” he said. “That there is what you dream of as a halfback growing up, you dream of kicking those moments.
“It’s different being in there, you are a little bit more nervous than you are in the dream. It goes back to what I said before, as a halfback you take the brunt of the team.
“If it’s going well, you take that, and if it’s bad, it’s bad.
“If I miss that and Penrith go through Nathan Cleary or Jarome Luai and get the drop goal, then they get all the plaudits and I’m the villain for missing. That’s what those moments are.
“I’ll never shy away from that, I’ll never shy away from them moments.”
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