A “very confident” Daine Laurie believes this will be his best season yet as he chases a new deal with the Wests Tigers.
Laurie enjoyed a breakout season in 2021 which earned him a nomination for the RLPA’s Players’ Champion award and backed it up with the Tigers’ Players’ Player honour in 2022.
But the 23-year-old expects his game to go to lift again this season, declaring to foxsports.com.au: “I reckon this will probably be one of my best years.”
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He’s put that down to the arrival of fellow former Panther Charlie Staines, who is another option at fullback.
“Me and him have been swapping in and out, I’ve been doing a little bit at five-eighth and he’s been doing a bit of wing,” Laurie said.
“It’s good to have him there, it keeps me on my toes. It’s friendly competition and it’s only going to make both of us better.”
The extra push has come at a good time too given Laurie’s contract expires at the end of the season.
He’s flying high with confidence heading into his third full NRL season and hopes that will help him secure a new deal with the club.
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“I just want to get results with the team first and hopefully play some good footy and get a little contract extension… ‘Sheensy’ (coach Tim Sheens) and ‘Waz’ (recruitment manager Warren McDonnell), hopefully they sign me up again.”
“I’m happy to let the footy do the talking.
“This has probably been one of my best pre-seasons that I’ve had, especially with ‘Stainsey’ here and all the boys pushing for positions. I reckon this will probably be one of my best years.
“I’m feeling very confident and can’t wait to show it.”
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Laurie is tipped to wear the No.1 jersey in Round 1, but outside of Staines he still has some hot competition in little-known rookie Jahream Bula — who played Jersey Flegg for the Tigers last season.
Sheens told The Sydney Morning Herald last month that Bula “will be a kid who comes out of nowhere,” and Laurie is also expecting big things from him this season.
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“He’s been carving up,” Laurie said.
“He can play Flegg this year but I reckon you’ll see a lot of him in (NSW) Cup and you never know you might see him play first grade.”
It’s fresh faces like those that have lifted the mood around training and has “all the boys smiling” after what he conceded was a “tough” 2022 season.
Laurie noted the “aggression” of veteran prop David Klemmer and “control” of hooker Api Koroisau — both new recruits — as big additions for the team, while adding: “‘Ice’ (Isaiah Papali’i) is a wrecking ball so adds a bit of flair to the edge.”
