Lachlan Fitzgibbon has joined Warrington Wolves on a three-year contract from NRL side Newcastle Knights; The 29-year-old comes from a family where his grandfather and uncle were Australian MPs; Watch every match of the 2024 Betfred Super League season live on Sky Sports
Friday 8 December 2023 16:14, UK
There is an old saying which dictates sport and politics should never mix. New Warrington Wolves signing Lachlan Fitzgibbon has no doubts about which side of that divide he comes down on.
Like many people from the rugby-league-obsessed city of Newcastle in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Fitzgibbon was bitten early on by the 13-a-side-code bug and has managed to forge a top-level professional career out of playing the game as well.
It is confrontations in the halls of power rather than on the rugby field which have been big part of the Fitzgibbon family business, however. Grandfather Eric represented Hunter as Australian Labor Party MP from 1984 to 1996 and was succeeded by Lachlan's uncle Joel, who later served as minster for defence in Kevin Rudd's administration and only retired as an MP last year.
Not that there was ever any chance of the 29-year-old ever following either of them into the political sphere, though.
"They both had pretty successful careers as politicians, but politics is definitely not for me," Fitzgibbon told Sky Sports, with a laugh.
"It was always rugby league for me. Growing up in Newcastle, there was always a bit of surfing at the beaches and a bit of cricket here and there.
"I love my golf, but I'm no good so couldn't make a career out of that, so here we are playing footy."
Fitzgibbon began playing rugby with the South Newcastle Lions club which the likes of St Helens back row Sione Mata'utia, former Tonga international forward Tevita Pangai Jr, and even NBA star Ben Simmons all featured for in their formative years too.
From there he progressed through the ranks to make his NRL debut with home city club Newcastle Knights in 2015 and went on to make 119 appearances in the second row until opting to move to the Betfred Super League on a three-year contract with Warrington at the end of the 2023 season.
Moving across to the other side of the world after so long in one place could have been daunting, but Fitzgibbon and his partner have quickly settled into an area which bears some similarities to the working-class, one-club community he hails from.
"That was something which really resonated with me, to come to this club," Fitzgibbon said. "Newcastle has such a passionate supporter base, they're a one-club town and that's what I've found with Warrington.
I've still got plenty of footy left in me, so I thought why not come over here while I'm still playing some really good footy and come to a really good club which has a really strong roster, great coaching staff, and is ready to compete for titles.
"They've probably got one of the best supports in the league. I found it really similar to Newcastle and it made the transition a lot easier for me.
"I'd been at the Knights for over 10 years, and I thought I was at the point in my career when I needed a change. I didn't see myself playing for any other NRL club bar Newcastle and Super League was always on my radar.
"I've still got plenty of footy left in me, so I thought why not come over here while I'm still playing some really good footy and come to a really good club which has a really strong roster, great coaching staff, and is ready to compete for titles."
The chance to work under Sam Burgess, who has returned to these shores with the Wolves for his first head coaching job after 13 years playing and then coaching with South Sydney Rabbitohs, was another big pull for Fitzgibbon.
Along with helping Souths claim the 2014 NRL title, Burgess achieved that rare status as a rugby league icon both in this country and Australia during his playing days and has already spent much of the first month of pre-season training trying to make a strong defence a hallmark of his Warrington team.
Fitzgibbon knows from his own experience just how much of a premium is placed on defence in the Australian competition and is looking forward to seeing how he stacks up against some of the more free-flowing attacks in Super League.
"As a second row, especially in my career in the NRL, I've floated between being an attacking back-rower and needing to defend," Fitzgibbon said.
"In the NRL and in the back row, you need to be a really good defensive player. You're the link between the middle and the edge, so you need to know how defence works and how systems work.
"It's a new challenge for me over here, I haven't played any Super League games yet, but the way they throw the footy around will definitely be a challenge and it's something I'm really looking forward to.
"We want to be a fit footy side, but we want to be a defence-orientated side. We want to win games on the back of our defence and that's what he's instilling in the boys at the moment."
Fitzgibbon arrived in the UK in time for the start of Warrington's pre-season training programme and is already anticipating that first game of the 2024 Super League season away to Grand Final runners-up Catalans Dragons on Saturday, February 17.
The intensity of the work Burgess has had his Wolves squad doing has matched that of anything Fitzgibbon has experienced back home too and he is in no doubt it is standing them in good stead to kick on after disappointing recent Super League campaigns.
"It hasn't been too dissimilar to an NRL pre-season, so that's how I know everyone is working hard towards the main goal of holding a trophy at the end of the year," Fitzgibbon said.
"We're on our way to doing that. We're only a month in, but it's looking promising."
Watch every match of the 2024 Betfred Super League season, including Magic Weekend, the play-offs, and men's, women's and wheelchair Grand Finals, plus the World Club Challenge, live on Sky Sports. Also stream with NOW.
