They're arguably the best front-row combination in the NRL but, for all the damage they dish out on the field, James Fisher-Harris and Moses Leota prefer to keep their heads down off it.
The softly spoken pair sat down to talk about their rise to the top of the sport in the latest episode of Ebbs And Flows.
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Fisher-Harris shares regret over post-grand final comments
Having broken the drought with the 2021 premiership, Penrith were able to go back-to-back last season, beating the Eels in the grand final.
Parramatta had defeated the Panthers twice in the regular season but were no match for the mountain men in the decider, going down 28-12.
Leota and Fisher-Harris spoke of the satisfaction that win gave them
“It was pretty good. It just felt like everyone was talking sh*t about us, to be honest,” Fisher-Harris said.
“It just feels that much better.”
“A lot of people were writing us off because we’d lost to Parra before,” Leota added.
“We sort of gained strength from that.”
Following the win, the Panthers came under-fire for comments made at their grand final presentation.
“We were at Panthers and then came over to the stadium just for that and the boys were still pissed,” Leota recalled.
“You could tell that the boys were still rattled and they were getting the boys up to talk and that.
“They hit me up to go say something, I was like, ‘Nah, I’m not jumping up there.’
“And they asked [Fisher-Harris], he jumped up and then that happened.”
Fisher-Harris got a loud cheer from the crowd when he declared, “Parra are our sons.”
The prop said he’d like that moment back.
“I know some of the Parra boys, we’re all good,” Fisher-Harris said.
“I think it was just their media team pissing me off, doing all their highlights and sh*t.
“They ticked me off. And I don’t know why they gave me the microphone.
“I probably shouldn’t have said that. Pretty silly but it is what it is. I like rivalries so yep, bring it on.
“My missus told me straight, ‘Don’t do that again, we’ve got kids and that.’
“It just put things into perspective, little kids coming up to me saying stuff like that, I was like, ‘Oh man, probably shouldn’t have said that.’”
MORE: 'I lost a bit of myself': Rabbitohs prop Liam Knight opens up on journey from rehab to NRL return
Moses Leota narrowly missed NSW Origin selection
Leota revealed he’d been selected as 19th man for the Blues in 2021 only to learn at the last minute he wasn’t eligible.
The Kiwi-born front-rower has been under the impression he moved to Australia when he was 12.
Unfortunately, he was mistaken.
“I kid you not, I actually thought I was 12 when I came over [to Australia],” Leota said.
“2021, I think it was the last game, I got called in as 19th man.
“They ring me back and they go, ‘Sorry, mate, you’re not eligible. You came over when you were 13.’
“I was adamant, bro. I was like, ‘Nah, I came over when I was 12.’
“They called up my old school and they were like, ‘Nah, he came over when he was 13.’”
Panthers learn harsh lessons from 2020 grand final
They may be reigning back-to-back premiers now but Penrith count lessons learned from their 2020 grand final loss to Melbourne as crucial to their success.
The Panthers came up against a more-experienced Storm side, finding themselves 22-0 down at half time.
Penrith fought back to finish 26-20 losers but the experience helped them become the powerhouse they are today.
“I think just that dog mentality,” Leota said of the lessons learned in 2020.
“The grand final was different. It’s not another game.
“We sort of got bullied that year and we had a meeting that we need a bit more dog in us.”
Fisher-Harris echoed those sentiments, recalling the video review of the game.
“It was actually good because we saw that we weren’t far off,” Fisher-Harris said.
“In the game we were like, ‘F***, what’s happening?’ Their line speed was crazy, nothing’s pulling off.
“Then when we actually looked at it, it was just little things we didn’t do that cost us big time.
“They pretty much played like Queensland. They just came out and bashed us.
“Shout out to Jesse [Bromwich] and all that. The boys taught us a lesson. We learned from that and now we’re dishing it out.”
