It was hard to tell if the music-loving Dallas Wade — who moonlights as a DJ — was joking or not.
He had to be pulling a swifty, surely. Tay Tay would seem a bit off-brand for the league boys.
But Wade, who has taken over the reins from long-serving Whalers coach David Reedy this year, just smiled and said you would be surprised by who gets up to dance when you hook up a Swift song.
"Trust me, some of them do," he said.
The 48-year-old moved down from Auckland in his late teens and has called Dunedin home for 30 years.
He arrived as a rugby union player but discovered the joy of league and made the switch.
Wade only hung up the boots four years ago. He was part of the furniture at the Kia Toa Tigers and played every position except fullback during his lengthy career.
He had a long involvement with the Whalers, both as a player and as part of the management.
He has had several stints as an assistant coach, but now has the top job.
Wade has inherited a team in a rebuilding phase.
There are many new faces, and the competition has been restructured this season.
The national men’s premiership has been split into two pools of five teams.
Waikato, Counties-Manukau, Bay of Plenty and the two Auckland-based teams are in section A, while Otago, Canterbury, Wellington, Southland and Aoraki are in section B.
The section winners will contest the final later in the year.
The Whalers open their campaign against the Aoraki Eels at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Sunday.
Otago had a bye in the opening round, while the Eels were beaten 58-12 by Canterbury in Timaru.
"[Aoraki have] always been a tough team. We've just got to try and lock down on some of their systems.
"But my team's pretty fresh this year."
Tama Apineru is one of the "old heads" in the Whalers and he will be lining up at stand-off this season. He has typically played fullback or centre, so it is a new challenge for him.
Wade said he wanted someone with experience in the position, and Apineru is closing in on 50 games for the Whalers.
"With his experience, he'll be able to see all the holes and will know some of the plays of the other teams because he's been around.
"He can put our boys into holes as well."
Apineru actually asked to play in the position. Wade was uncertain at first, but Apineru performed well at club level, which gave Wade the confidence to give the move the green light.
One of the players Apineru will be looking to get into a hole is centre Sailusi Temaka.
"We had a trial game and, for a guy that is very quiet, he left some people in the dust.
"He has the ability to get around people and through tackles even though he's not the biggest person.
"Yeah, he's just got some nice footwork. And he can see holes and his vision is just unbelievable."
Wade has a couple of tanks up front in Tafa Tafa and Israel Otunuku. It is their job to soften the defence and clear the way for the backs.
"Those two would be our work engines. They had a really good season for their club this year.
"Especially Israel. He was dominant in everything. I’d hate to be in front of him."
Mason Lome-Hindle will start at fullback.
"He's part of the Warriors Academy. And wow, he's got pace.
"He’s another one with vision. So as soon as you put him in the hole, he is just gone."
You might say he is swift. But who knows whether he is a Swiftie.
Otago Whalers
The draw
• Aoraki Eels, Forsyth Barr Stadium, September 14, noon
• Wellington Orcas, Wellington, September 20, noon
• Canterbury Bulls, Christchurch, September 27, noon
• Southland Rams, Tahuna Park, October 4, 2pm
Squad
Mason Lome-Hindle, Mavae Manuika, Toru Mateariki, Sailusi Temaka, Lotu Solomona, Tama Apineru, Jerome Buckley-Fa’atoia, Tafa Tafa, Jak Morton, Petelo Amato, Tofatu Solia, Sefo Muasika, Benji Latu, Poyer Reihana-Finau, Keenan Masina, Mone Samate-Palu, Aifala Taelaga, Nathanael Anderson, Kobe Tuhakaraina, Simon Pupuali’i, Tepuretu Piri, Liam Bright, Israel Otunuku
