St George Illawarra Dragons centre Zac Lomax has admitted if he had his time again, he wouldn't perform his controversial try celebration from Round 6 last year when, after a Dragons try, he jumped on the back of former teammate and now Newcastle Knights backrower Tyson Frizell.
Speaking to Fox Sports, Lomax revealed that the pair are friends from the days of his debut season and that he had learned from his mistake.
“Frizell is one of my good mates and I debuted beside him, I had been locker buddies with him since I first came into grade,” he said.
“I love Frizz (Frizell) and I respect him so highly, I think what he has done in the game, I love him and he is a really good family man as well.
“I have spoken about it a million times now... but as I said, you live and you learn.
“It wasn't coming from any ill intent, it is just the way you learn and the way that it was perceived, you look at it and you just don't do it again.
“But that's footy mate”.
It was a controversial moment in another poor season for the Dragons, who could only finish 10th, extending their run of not making finals to four years.
Lomax, being one of the stars of the current line-up, knows this poor period is unacceptable for his side's passionate fans and feels the pressure but continued to tell of his dedication to fixing the issues alongside struggling coach Antony Griffin.
“I know the history of the club, it's really rich, there's a lot that goes behind it, I am now one of the senior players and I want nothing more than the team to be back where it belongs,” he said.
“(Finals football) is exactly where it needs to be... it is about competing all the time and being good people off the field”.
The Dragons have the bye round one, so they begin their season in round two on the 12th of March against the Titans at home, where they'll be hoping to kickstart a more successful season.
