Joe Ofahengaue says he let his teammates down in defeat to Wests Tigers

BRONCOS youngster Joe Ofahengaue says he blames himself for Brisbane’s shock 19-18 loss to Wests Tigers last Friday.

Joe Ofahengaue says he blames himself for the defeat.

BRONCOS forward Joe Ofahengaue believes he is still on the same level as Brisbane’s recent debutants, claiming he let the team down in Friday night’s loss to the Tigers.

Usually a bench player, the 20-year-old started at prop with six players out on Origin duty.

The young enforcer put in a solid effort, finishing the first half having churned out the most metres for his side, but fell behind in defence with just 19 tackles on fulltime.

He was far from Brisbane’s worst but said he felt disheartened by the fact their forward pack failed to capitalise.

Ofahengaue delivered a harsh assessment of his performance after the match, saying he was “regretting the game”.

“I don’t want to let the boys down and I felt like I kind of let them down in that first half,” he said.

“We didn’t defend how we usually would and we gave them too much space to the run the ball.

“If you want to win the game it all starts in the middle.

“I don’t think we led the boys out real well in the first half.”

Ofahengaue, who has played 24 NRL games, said he did not think he was yet a good example to the likes of rookie players Jaydn Su’A and Tevita Pangai Jr, who made their first grade debuts against the Tigers.

Only a year older than Pangai Jr, and two years older than Su’A, Ofahengaue said his ascension to playing regular first grade was not something he wanted them to admire as he was still learning the game just like them.

Ofahengaue was given a rare shot at starting on Friday.

“I’m still in a learning process myself,” he said.

“I can’t give myself wraps for anything. Right now I’m just looking to do my job the best I can and follow in the footsteps of our forward leaders.

“I am in the same boat as them (Su’A and Pangai Jr).

“Yeah, I play NRL most weeks but I am still in the process of learning new things every day.”

Despite the disappointing loss, Ofahengaue said he was “real proud” of the way the young duo carried themselves in the game.

“I have seen Jaydn come through in the under-20s ... I reckon he did a good job,” he said.

“Tevita just does what he does best and that’s adding aggression and energy in the game.”

Originally published as Joe Ofahengaue says he let his teammates down in defeat to Wests Tigers