Kurt Gidley is only three months into his English adventure with Warrington, but he is already contemplating an extended stay beyond 2016. The 33-year-old signed for the Wolves this year knowing nothing but life as a Novocastrian; he was born in the Australian city of Newcastle and spent his entire career with their flagship team, the NRL’s Newcastle Knights.
But life in England is so enjoyable for Gidley and his young family that he is keen to explore the extension that was placed on top of the one-year contract he initially signed to move to Super League, after admitting that his career needed this new challenge heading into his mid-30s.
“I think it’s given me a bit of a fresh impetus,” the versatile back said. “I had a great career in Australia and the NRL, I played my whole career with Newcastle in the town where I grew up which was great, but I just wanted a change and wanted to do something different.
“This opportunity has freshened me up and it’s been a great challenge for me at this stage of my career and my life. I’ve been trying to earn the respect of new coaches, new team-mates and new fans and that’s something that excites me.
“I was always keen to come for two years. The deal was based around how many games I played in the first year as to whether the second year would kick in and roll over, so I was always thinking about both years, not just the one.”
Super League is long perceived by some as the weaker sibling of the NRL, but with older brother Matt having played in England with St Helens in recent years, Gidley is fully aware of the rigours of the competition. “I spoke to a few people who’ve played over here, including my brother, and I still think it’s a quality competition, as I did before I arrived,” Gidley said. “The NRL is a real tough competition week in, week out, but I would never underestimate this league. It’s been really tough – but really enjoyable.”
It could not have started better for Gidley. The Wolves have won their first five games of the new season, and they will aim to make it six on Friday night when they face Castleford. Yet despite such eye-catching form, including last week’s win in Perpignan against Catalans Dragons, Gidley says his side are nowhere near their best.
“It’s a great start to be five wins from five but there’s certainly a few areas we can improve on. We want to win all the games we play in, but home games especially are really important for us.
“We’ve another big game this week where we want to get the result and we’ll have to improve to do it. We’ll have to compete a bit better, get the percentage rate higher and we’ll have to be a bit more consistent defensively.”
