Wigan Warriors new-boy making up for lost time

The 23-year-old half-back arrived in Wigan this week, more than a month after signing from Manly.

And after having to wait for red tape and regulations, he’s thrown himself head first into work at the Robin Park Arena.

“I’m excited to be here,” he said. “The last few weeks have been a bit of a waiting game with the visa clearance and stuff.

“It took about two weeks to get the visa and get it all through but I’m happy to finally get here and start training.”

The delay in getting over was in stark contrast to the speed at which the move came about.

“It was very fast actually,” he acknowledged. “It would have been about mid-November, it was a Tuesday, I spoke to my manager, and by that Friday night we were released from Manly and signed with Wigan.

“But I’m really grateful and can’t wait to see what the next three years has in store.

“When I got the message to see if I would be interested in going to Wigan, I knew how much of a good club it is and how much success they have had.

“And the opportunity to play at 6 is a massive thing for me.

“I want to lead the team around the park, develop my game and be a running five-eight so the opportunity to have control of a team and show what I can do on the field was a major factor.

“In the last couple of years at Manly I’ve played a bit at 9, the halves in front of me were Daly Cherry-Evans and Kieran Foran and they’re two people I’ve learnt a lot from.

“I bided my time and played at 9 a bit, but now to be able to play my preferred position in the 6.

“I’ll put my best foot forward and make sure I do everything I can on the field to bring the club success.”

He’s also not concerned at having to play catch-up on his fitness.

“I’ve been doing a bit of training at home in Australia so I’m not too worried about that,” he added.

“It’s just about getting kilometres in the legs and meeting the boys – and I can’t wait for that.

"I’ve been in contact a fair bit just to let them know the programmes I’ve been doing at home in Australia.

“They were happy so it was just about getting it all together and I can get training here now.”

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