'I was really honoured to be asked': Captaincy role a shock for CSU recruit

Thomas was one of four English recruits that joined the Reddies over the off-season and he agreed it was a massive honour to be handed the captaincy role at CSU.

"Massively, it was a bit of a shock as well," Thomas said.

"I was really honoured to be asked by Mick (Wakeling) to be captain and it's something that I haven't taken lightly at all.

"It's a great group of guys that have made it really easy to be captain of."

The Reddies face the biggest test of their season so far this weekend as they go up against Wagga City who are undefeated and sit on top of the Southern Inland Rugby Union (SIRU) ladder.

Thomas said he was looking forward to the contest against the Boiled Lollies and he believed it would be a great learning experience for the Reddies.

"Yeah definitely, it'll be a good test for us," he said.

"We've been doing okay but they're obviously the benchmark, it'll be good to see where we stand against them.

"They are clearly the top side and however the game goes we'll definitely get a fair bit out of it."

CSU has enjoyed a positive start to the season having recorded two wins over Griffith and Albury while they also had a draw against Leeton in round two.

Thomas believes it's been a good start for his side, however he expected they would only get better as the season progressed.

"I think we are going well," he said.

"We are at the start of a rebuild so it's good to get a few good results in there, but there's definitely a lot more to come I think.

"We are building and we can see that in our results."

The Reddies only narrowly got over the line against Albury over the weekend and Thomas admitted they were far from their best on Saturday.

"I think it was a big relief when we got the win," he said.

"We didn't play as well as we know we can, but credit to Albury as they really showed up.

"Their results don't quite reflect how they've been and they gave us a good game, but we know we can play a lot better.

"It was a frustrating match, but you look back and go well we won there.

"The Reddies the year before probably wouldn't have won that, so you have to take the positives out of it."

Thomas has spent the past couple of years playing in London and he revealed the game is played a little differently in Australia compared to back home.

"It's definitely been an adjustment," he said.

"It's a very different style and a lot more open here, but I'm really enjoying it and getting used to it now."

Used to a slower, more structured game style centred around the kicking game back home, Thomas said it's taken him a while to find his feet.

However now five games into his tenure at CSU, he believes he's starting to feel confident playing the new style.

"Yeah I think so," he said.

"It took a couple of games to settle in, but now I'm adjusting to the style over here and the weather as well.

"It's a big adjustment, but personally I think I'm starting to find my feet."

Thomas has now been living in Wagga for a couple of months and he said he's enjoying his time in the city.

"I'm loving it and it's a really nice little city," he said.

"It's a nice change from the life of London I've had for the last five years and I'm really enjoying it.

"I think it's a really nice place and somewhere where I can definitely stay for a bit."