League: End of an era

Stacey Jones

He might have played 230 games for the Warriors and amassed 592 points but there are no more important games in Stacey Jones' mind than today's match-up with the Bulldogs.

Thoughts of sipping a cheeky French red on the Riviera or chomping on escargot have been firmly put in the back of the Little General's mind - the same place he has filed the highs and lows of his 10 years at the Warriors.

For many people who leave after years of service, it often doesn't dawn on them that they're actually leaving until they touch down in their new home. In many ways, that's what it feels like for the 29-year-old halfback, who has known nothing other than the Warriors since he played his first game against the Eels in April 1995.

"For me it's week by week and I'm taking the emotion out of it," Jones said as he took a break between shooting another TV advert for one of the club's sponsors. "It's going to be sad to go. I've been here since the beginning [of the Warriors] but I still have a job to do."

That job is helping the Warriors make a late charge for a place in the top eight, and he knows that a loss against an equally desperate Bulldogs side today would make that prospect almost impossible.

A limp end to the Warriors season is certainly not the way Jones would have planned his departure from Auckland. After weeks of rumour and innuendo, he signalled his intentions in April to move to France at the end of what he hoped would be a successful season. It's not quite working out that way.

Jones, though, has experienced a few highs and lows along the way. "It's been such a roller-coaster," he admits of his 10 years at the club. "It's all about getting confidence in the club but it's a hard place to have confidence when you're playing because you're always under the spotlight.

"There's only one team here so that brings pressure. When you win, it's the best game of the year and if you lose it's the worst game - there's no real spread. Sometimes it gets hard and the only way to overcome that is to win games."

It will feel strange not seeing Jones run out onto Ericsson Stadium every fortnight. He is the only remaining foundation member left and his departure will signal the end of an era. Fans have already started recognising that and approach Jones after each game to wish him well next season. "It makes me feel good," he said.

Jones has talked about a new challenge, when he heads to France but each of his 10 seasons have been that little bit different. "I've been here such a long time but it's always a different environment," he said. "This year it's a new gym, a new stand and new players. Coaches, players and management have often changed so, to me, it's always been a fresh start."

Jones will pull on a Warriors jersey for the last time, possibly against Manly in Sydney at the end of August unless they make the top eight, a little sad but also excited about his new life and the shape the Warriors are in.

"I think they will be really good next year," he said with an obvious lift in his voice. "This year has been a learning experience and next year will be another step. I think the team will go a lot better next year with the players they've got."

It's strange to hear Jones talking about the Warriors as "they" and not "we" but it's all part of the separation process. One thing you could never accuse Jones of is being a sentimental old bugger. "It might sink in [that I'm leaving] during the last couple of weeks... but it might not."

When that is might become clearer today... but it might not.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY