Replacing Roger Tuivasa-Sheck's leadership at NZ Warriors will be a collective effort, not just for one player, insists veteran forward Tohu Harris.
Tuivasa-Sheck, 27, will leave a huge void at the Auckland NRL club, when he leaves 13-man code to link up with NZ Rugby and the Blues in 2022.
But Harris believes the challenge of filling his captain’s boots will come down to more than one player.
"Obviously, losing Roger is huge for the club," he says. "He brings so much, on and off the field.
"A number of us are going to have to pick up the slack where he leaves off.
"Not one person will fill the hole that he leaves. There's got to be a number of us that continue to take steps forward."
One of the Warriors' senior players, Harris re-signed with the club last week and looms as a front-runner for the role of club captain, once Tuivasa-Sheck departs.
"It certainly takes that pressure off," Harris says of his new contract. "Now I can just focus on football and don't have to worry about that side of footy.
"I can work on my game, try and get better each and every week, and just have no distractions, really."
Now into the Warriors' second consecutive season based in Australia, due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, Harris says the mood in the camp is where it needs to be.
And with one win already under their belts, the Warriors can go two-from-two, when they face Newcastle Knights on Friday evening.
"I've really enjoyed the pre-season and all the work that we've done so far, especially with the group that we have here.
"The new players that have come in,and also the players who've been here for a few years, [I] feel like we've got a really good group of guys - all the staff are great too.
"It's a really good feeling. Hopefully, we can keep building and taking positive steps forward."
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