There are plenty of reasons to celebrate out at Belmore with the Bulldogs closing in on a finals berth, but it was a different kind of birth that means the world to skipper Stephen Crichton, who became a father the night before their win over the Warriors.

Crichton and his partner Leone welcomed a little girl into the world on Friday, with the superstar five-eighth paying tribute to Praise with a rock the baby celebration after he scored the opening try.

“It’s been a massive 24 hours for me, just being there for wifey and seeing what she goes through. It was a massive motivation for me to come and get strapped up,” he said.

“The moment she told me that I could go and play, it was just like no matter how tired I was today or how sore I was, it wasn’t as bad as what she was going through. So massive motivation there.

“But to hold the baby last night (Friday) was the biggest blessing and probably the biggest thing in life right now.”

Leone was staying in Penrith with family while her partner was getting ready for the Warriors game, but he made the mad dash west when his phone rang.

“It was like 4am, and she called me while I was sleeping. She’s been staying out in Penrith, and I’ve been staying at home,” he explained.

“So she called me, and straight away at 4am we headed out to the hospital. She was there for basically the whole day and pushed the baby out at 9.30 last night. It was a long day, but she did really well.

“She’s a strong woman, and respect to the ladies that go through that.

“Not really (it hadn’t hit me that I’m a dad) until probably just last night holding her. I’ve got a lot of nieces and nephews – she’s going to be the tenth grandchild for mum and dad.

“I’ve got a lot of nieces and nephews, but obviously it hits different because she’s mine. She’s going to be a little princess for the rest of her life, and I’ll be protecting her.

“It has hit me now, but the most important thing while I was on the field was just doing my job for the boys and getting that win. Now, going back and seeing her is going to be really special.”

Crichton has already jokingly ruled out a potential NRLW career for Praise because there’s “too much media”, but she’ll always get to look back at this game as the night her dad did something special for the world to see.

“Even if I didn’t score, I would have had an opportunity (to celebrate her) but to get a try and just give it to them is pretty cool,” he said after scoring.

Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo praised his captain for not only getting on the field but for playing a starring role again in the halves after he made the switch from centre last month.

“He looks pretty good as a five-eighth,” he said, with plenty of people questioning at the time whether it was the right move.

“Especially one that didn’t sleep so I’m very proud of him.”

Originally published as ‘It hits different because she’s mine’: Fatherhood hits home for Stephen Crichton as he welcomes ‘princess’ Praise into the world