League: No pressure on million-dollar man

Sam Tomkins, left, and Shaun Johnson will line up for the Warriors this weekend in Rotorua.

When you sign for a world-record fee and move halfway around the world, you could be forgiven for feeling the pressure.

But after his first full season with the Vodafone Warriors, star English fullback Sam Tomkins says he has definitely settled into life in Auckland.

Did the pressure ever get to him?

"I didn't feel any pressure externally. I set my own standards, and I try and meet these every day."

And he's setting these standards high for next season, hoping for his team to improve on last year's premiership ladder position of ninth.

"We don't want to finish ninth this year, we want to finish first. Every team does ... we definitely want to make the playoffs this year" he said.

As the 25-year-old prepared for Saturday's NRL pre-season trial against the Penrith Panthers at Rotorua International Stadium, he told the Rotorua Daily Post the team were more than ready for the new season.

"Some of the boys are looking in the best shape I've ever seen them," he said, praising the efforts of new Warriors conditioning coach Dayne Norton.

The England international was a Warrior even before he arrived in New Zealand - he signed from Wigan in 2013 for a world record-breaking fee that topped the million-dollar mark.

He was a mainstay for the Auckland side last season, featuring in all 24 games of the campaign - but for now, he's focused on the game at hand.

"The Panthers were the final team we played last season, when we didn't make the playoffs, so obviously there are memories of that. But it won't make too much difference - we know it's only a trial, but we go out at each game wanting to win."

On Tuesday, head coach Andrew McFadden announced a strong team for this weekend, which included established first-graders such as Tomkins, Thomas Leuluai, and Golden Boot winner Shaun Johnson, as well as new signings Bodene Thompson and Matt Allwood.

Also scheduled to appear is young five-eighth Tuimoala Lolohea, who told the Rotorua Daily Post he was "looking forward to playing more NRL games this year". Lolohea, 20, who is starting his second season with the Warriors, took the time to praise one of the team's newest recruits, 31-year-old former Melbourne Storm forward Ryan Hoffman.

He said: "Hoffy has brought a lot of experience and he's been a good role model in training."

The Warriors' pre-season kick-off is at 3pm on Saturday against the Panthers for what will be their only NRL pre-season trial on New Zealand turf.

The game is the main event of this weekend's Rotorua Rugby League Festival. The festival includes a nines tournament at the stadium tomorrow and Saturday, involving clubs from Bay of Plenty and Wellington.