FOUR-TRY South Sydney winger Alex Johnston has told of the heart-wrenching build-up to the match against Brisbane in which his four tries took a back seat to Jai Arrow.
Having been diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease, Arrow was invited to ring Souths’ Legacy Bell before an Accor Stadium match named in his honour with Souths wearing white jerseys bearing his name.
“I think it was just the occasion. You know, the jerseys we were wearing, the week that it was – we really wanted to perform tonight,” Johnston told ABC Radio after a 48-6 win.
“Yeah, we didn’t let Jai down.”
But the intensity of the pre-match formalities caught the players by surprise.
“It’s a funny one. All week we were pretty sweet, having a laugh with Jai,” said the Premiership’s top tryscorer of all time.
“And then obviously when he’s about to ring the bell, he starts going to tears. We’re about to play a game and we’re trying not to cry.
“Yeah, mixed emotions. Obviously a big win for a special bloke. What a team-mate he is. I’m just stoked that we got the result tonight for him.”
One emotion that was not mixed for Johnston was his gratitude to centre Latrell Seigwalt, who is filling in for superstar Latrell Mitchell.
“It doesn’t matter what Trell’s in there, as long as I’m getting ball I’m happy,” said Johnston.
“He’s doing a great job filling in at the moment and it just goes to show the depth that we have. He can slot in whenever Trell’s out.
“It was a good night. I didn’t have to do too much with those tries – as usual. Happy to score four.”
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