“[Bostock] fits the mould – he’s a really good athlete, he’s tall, he’s got the skills – so I’m sure he’d fill in at centre fine.
“[Defence] is where you win or lose games, the stats show it, so if you can keep teams below 18 points you’re going to finish in the top four. That’s our aim for the year.”
Tupou averaged 121 running metres a game in his past two seasons, while making 21 linebreaks. His hulking frame – nudging 100 kilograms – inspired 116 tackle busts in his past 30 games.
Junior Tupou in action at Dolphins training.Credit: Dolphins NRL
“He’s a big boy, he was on the wrestle mats yesterday throwing some boys around, so I’m pretty excited to see him this year,” Farnworth said.
“I’m sure he’s going to have a great year.”
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The lack of certainty around the make-up of the side has created a competitive mentality under Woolf’s tutelage, with fullback Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow declaring the demands on the players had risen since master coach Wayne Bennett’s departure.
While the Dolphins played a simple style under Bennett – prioritising ball possession and grit – it was also physically demanding and wore the group down with the finals in sight.
In their maiden two seasons, they finished round 13 in top-four contention, before winning just six of 24 games across the backend of the respective campaigns.
Woolf has set about rectifying that, instilling a brutal fitness regimen in Redcliffe to ensure they do not fade away again.
“The standards have gone up a level, and we all needed it coming off last year when we fell off,” Tabuai-Fidow said.
“With all the boys, their standards have gone through the roof and the mental state has, too.
“It’s good seeing how fit the boys are and how hard they’re working, and it only makes me get up to their standards and be a better player.”
