Ahead of his second World Cup appearance for Samoa, Penrith Panthers five-eighth Jarome Luai has said that the hatred he and his Penrith teammates have received in the wake of their second consecutive premiership is a sign of their success.
But while the Panthers are happy to relish some of the attention they attract, Luai also admitted that his social media post following the Grand Final was an inappropriate mistake.
Luai was investigated by the NRL Integrity Unit following the post, which included the Panthers half celebrating with Jaeman Salmon with an inappropriate caption.
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“I realised when I woke up to the phone call, I knew I had to take it down straight away,” Luai told 9News in regards to the post.
“I know it caught a few headlines. I'm just grateful I get to participate in the first couple of (World Cup) games.
“With the influence we have as NRL players we definitely need to watch what we say and that's definitely a lesson learned for me.”
But while Luai was happy to admit the error of his ways in regards to social media, he said suggestions of arrogance around the Panthers in response to their Grand Final celebrations were a reflection of how good their team was.
“I've sort of got a saying for myself – if you're not hated, you're not doing it right,” the five-eighth said.
“I'm sort of embracing that.
“We're just being who we are as people. Whoever knows us face to face and person to person knows we are good people.
“We're just enjoying this ride.”
