Motormouth playmaker tops penalty tally

FIONA GOODALL/Auckland Suburbans

STATS MAN: James Maloney's prolific pointscoring has him sitting high in several NRL season players statistics lists.

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Pop quiz, hotshot.

Which NRL bad boy has conceded the most penalties this season?

Here's a choice. Is it:

a) Narrow-eyed, alleged-sponsor-bashing Manly hard nut Anthony Watmough?

b) Short-fused, Kiwi-baiting Cowboys nutter Willie Mason?

c) Quiet, deadly, Kiwis battering ram Adam Blair?

d) Or the "never-quiet", ginger-bearded Warriors standoff James Maloney, all 81kg of him?

It's D. Yeah, really.

This year, the referee's whistle has sounded 19 times just for Maloney. "He's a cheeky halfback and he pushes the boundaries a bit, and he is getting used to what he can get away with, and what he can't," says Warriors coach Ivan Cleary, who then smiles, and adds: "He's just learning a little bit slower than I would like."

Some of those penalties are for clumsy challenges on kickers, although that could charitably be interpreted as the all-action Maloney's dedicated chase of the "one-percenters", the extra little efforts that are appreciated by team-mates and coaches if not the fans.

And some of them are for Maloney's incessant, rasping chatter during a game, a quality that isn't limited to his time on the field.

"He's never quiet," confirms lock Micheal Luck. "That's his character and you need them in every side to make things interesting. But sometimes you wish he would cork it. But I love having him around."

In the past week, Maloney has been linked to Parramatta and Wakefield, an unlikely conjunction of clubs but a recognition of the breakthrough he has made this season. However, he is contracted to the Warriors for 2011. "I hadn't even read about it, I had no idea," he says of the speculation.

A similar answer emerges when Greg Alexander's assessment of Maloney as the best find of the season is mentioned, and indeed to inquiries as to how he's handling the pressure of regular first grade. "Bigger things to worry about than reading your own press," he ventures.

Safe to assume, then, that he hasn't consulted NRL Stats either for his place in the penalties-conceded ranking. "Ivan has let me know," Maloney says with a sheepish smile. "We had a bit of a chat. It's probably not a good stat to be up in: I know I chalked about five up against Penrith and I am trying to work on it. They are mostly for little things but they can put the team back and penalties are costly in today's game."

Maloney has played more reserve grade than most: a year with the Wentworthville Magpies when he'd hoped to be playing for Parramatta; a year for the Central Coast when he wanted to be turning out for Melbourne.

"No one knew much about him when he turned up – I know I didn't," admits Luck. "But he has made every post a winner this year – there have been games he has grabbed by the scruff of the neck by himself and turned."

Despite arriving at the Warriors at the age of 24, Maloney says he'd never considered the prospect he might become one of the sport's nearly men. And despite a four-game first-grade record before this year, he says playing 17 of the club's 19 games so far was "probably what I was expecting... it has worked out on plan, pretty much".

Cleary, who had watched Maloney since 2007 after a tip-off from former North Sydney team-mate Greg Florimo, says Maloney has had a "pretty good year".

But avoiding the referee's ire is not the only lesson this late starter has to learn – it's next season that will prove whether he has made the grade. "Guys in their second season can get better or they can go backwards – depending on their mindset," cautions Cleary. It's here where Maloney's lack of interest in the media will help. "A lot more will be known about him, and expectations will be higher... but one of his good qualities is he is very level-headed, and not affected too much by pressure."

- © Fairfax NZ News