At the ground in which his father spilled blood for the Balman Tigers, the raw emotion poured out.
Tane Edmed provided the defining image of a famous Waratahs win at Leichhardt Oval, tearing up in his post-match interview with Stan Sport’s Morgan Turinui.
“I don’t have the words,” Edmed said, following Saturday’s stunning 24-21 upset of the 12-time Super Rugby champion Crusaders.
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“I’ve got 30 friends and family here. I’ve got these boys (teammates). And the fans have been outstanding. Some of the stuff we endured last year, we didn’t win a game… the support and belief that DC (coach Darren Coleman) instilled – we know we can do it.”
NSW went into the contest paying $15 to win but young five-eighth Edmed’s spirit summed up the club’s dramatic turnaround.
Edmed’s father Steve played in two grand finals as a prop for the Tigers as part of a 136-game career for the club between 1988-95.
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Tane also starred in league and cricket as a schoolboy before opting for a career in rugby.
“He’s a big sook, Tane, isn’t he,” first-year coach Coleman joked.
“But we were all fighting them (tears) back. You just don’t know when the emotional victories are going to come. And that euphoria that you get straight after a final whistle in a game that you’re not sure you’re going to win or not, and you’ve worked bloody hard to win it, you should show emotion.
“And Tane, as I said was a big sook, but everyone was feeling it, everyone was happy. There was a lot of emotion because we’ve had some wins obviously this year and we’ve got some credibility back, but to knock off a top Kiwi team was awesome.”
The win lifted the 6-4 Waratahs to sixth on the ladder and they’ll start warm favourites against the last-placed Moana Pasifika in Auckland on Saturday.
“We’re having a crack and we’re a team worth following,” Coleman said.
“We may not be perfect but we’ll keep fighting until the end… it was cool, even in the warm-up, just watching the crowd, I talk to these boys about it regularly, when people are lined up to come and watch you, it’s a good feeling.
“And when you can send them home (happy), it’s a pretty powerful thing. I’ve coached a while but never been at this big of an organisation. I’ve sent supporters home happy and sad for 20-odd years, but never this many. You feel pretty f—— good.”
Crusaders captain Codie Taylor conceded the Waratahs simply “wanted it more” and coach Scott Robertson struggled to explain the flat performance.
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“It’s a good question, we’re looking for the answer ourselves,” Robertson said.
“We had a really good week – connected, good mindset. We know playing Aussie teams is a little bit different, we know how desperate they are, they’re a dogged side, the Waratahs.
“They put us under the pressure cycle that we just couldn’t quite get out of, and then just hung on there. How do we get better? We’re going to look at our honesty, look at our weeks, have a good look at everything really, because it’s all there but we’ve just got to complete some stuff.”