Jarome Luai can appreciate the irony, even if it scares him a little.
The $6 million Tiger King is reigning over a playmaking spine of teenagers, pulling halves partner Lachie Galvin into line like senior players once did with him.
Luai, 28, has managed to bribe his three-year-old daughter Akira into wearing her new Wests Tigers jersey with Krispy Kreme donuts, the glazed delicacies that reside right alongside Penrith’s premiership-laden trophy cabinet and the Royce Simmons retirement village out Panthers way.
When he steps out in Tigers colours for the first time against Newcastle on Friday night, Luai will be the senior figure with 19-year-olds Heath Mason, Galvin and Tallyn Da Silva alongside him in key playmaking positions.
“I still feel young,” Luai insists, confirming that he and ex-Panthers teammate Sunia Turuva have brought a new Boombox to Tigers training, driving CEO Shane Richardson to distraction.
“Lachie Galvin, he’s always ready to go. He’s always sniffing around, that kid. He’s a cool dude, a free spirit. He’s got a lot of energy and he’s ready to take on the world.
Jarome Luai can see shades of himself in Lachlan Galvin.Credit: Rhett Wyman
“He’s always laughing and having a joke. You find yourself trying to tell him to snap out of it and switch on. But not too long ago I was that kid.
“I even laugh to myself a bit there, remembering that I had those leaders pulling me into line. I’ve got to be that guy, which is pretty scary because it feels like you’re getting old.
“But everyone gets to this point some day, and it’s cool to flip the roles and be in those shoes now.”
Coming off Benji Marshall’s bench and filling Luai with just as much enthusiasm is 27-year-old rookie Tristan Hope, who has turned a $1200-a-week train and trial deal into an NRL debut.
Jarome Luai: King of the playmaking kids
Heath Mason: 19 years, 277 days, seven games
Lachlan Galvin: 19 years, 234 days, 21 games
Jarome Luai: 28 years, 48 days, 131 games
Tallyn Da Silva: 19 years, 219 days, 11 games
At one point in his mid-20s, Hope managed to only play 15 or so Queensland Cup games across four seasons, plugging away in the third-tier Brisbane local competition in between.
The 174-centimetre hooker once played opposite Luai in 2017 in the under-20s for the Broncos.
But when the Tigers offered a pre-season training deal and one last shot at cracking the NRL, the Mitchelton teacher’s aid hesitated, given his wife Jess was pregnant with their second child.
“I got the offer to come down midway through last year and I ummed and ahhed for a while,” Hope says.
Tristan Hope’s impressive trial form has earned him a round one debut.Credit: Getty Images
“We were expecting in December and to be honest, if she wasn’t giving the green light, the [train and trial deal] is something I wouldn’t have done.
“I’m getting choked up actually, because straight away, she said, ‘No, what are you thinking? This is your dream, your goal. We’ll make it work’.
“The club gave me time off to go home when the bub was born and Benji prides himself on that family-first environment and I’ve lived and breathed that. Now we’re all down here and the stars have aligned to have me making my debut.”
It hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows in Tiger Town over a summer of growing expectations.
David Klemmer is still in limbo and fronting for training as he awaits clearance to join the Dragons, who can’t sign the veteran prop while Francis Molo’s own exit is tied up with lawyers and compensation bids. Justin Olam is on the verge of a medical retirement due to knee issues. Api Koroisau’s suspension from late last year and Jahream Bula’s off-season shoulder surgery will keep them out for the season-opener.
Luai’s minor quad injury out of a pre-season bootcamp, meanwhile, had rugby league in a flap in January. The real issue from that gruelling affair, though, was what Turuva initially thought was a bout of gastro, that turned out to be appendicitis.
“He was vomiting at the airport. He got home, felt worse and his missus had to take him to hospital and it turned out to be pretty serious,” Luai said of his fellow recruit.
“It was a bit of a scare, but the boys saw the resilience he showed, because he had it throughout that army camp. He finished the last day with that.
“That’s a big tick from my perspective, coming into a new club, trying to prove yourself.
“The boys have taken a lot of inspiration from that and he’s ready to go. He’s himself, he’s as loud as ever.”
And so is Luai. He has spent more than a year preparing to take charge of the Tigers, winning a State of Origin series, another Panthers premiership, and stepping forward as a leading No. 7 in the process.
“I’m definitely feeling the expectation to play well, to be someone that helps this team off the bottom… But I’m also excited. Round one, new colours, new combinations, new team.”
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