Gagai's stunning rebirth

FORMER Test centre Matt Gidley has hailed Dane Gagai as a Queensland star in the making as the Newcastle flyer prepares to face the club that sacked him.

Dane Gagai has prospered at Newcastle

FORMER Test centre Matt Gidley has hailed Dane Gagai as a Queensland star in the making as the Newcastle flyer prepares to face the Broncos club that sacked him.

Gagai's NRL dreams appeared to be shattered 14 months ago when he was axed by Brisbane coach Anthony Griffin for a series of minor infractions.

At his lowest ebb, Gagai slept on the couch at Broncos teammate Jack Reed's place before packing his belongings into an old black BMW for the long drive to redemption at Newcastle. Tonight, Gagai runs on to Hunter Stadium at peace, in a sense indebted to the Broncos for the wake-up call that has sparked his renaissance under Wayne Bennett at Newcastle.

The Knights recently rewarded the 22-year-old with a two-year upgrade and Newcastle CEO Gidley, a man who knows Origin class when he sees it, believes Gagai is destined to wear Maroon.

Indeed, Gagai's career has come full circle. Tonight he will mark up against Reed, the one-time Broncos colleague who helped when Gagai briefly went off the rails.

"I'm really pleased for Dane, he's settled really well on and off the field and I'm proud with the way he has handled himself," said Gidley, who played 11 Origin matches and 15 Tests.

"In terms of talent, I think Dane can cut it at Origin level.

"He definitely has the ability to play Origin for Queensland. It's just a matter of getting some more experience in big games.

"Last weekend was an example of that, the Roosters clash was a big game and Dane marked up against an Origin centre in Michael Jennings and handled himself really well.

"They both negated each other. It was a really good centre battle between them so that shows Dane can match it with the best centres."

With the Broncos having lost key flankers Jharal Yow Yeh and Dale Copley to serious injuries, coach Griffin could certainly do with Gagai's pace.

Since arriving in Newcastle, Gagai has played 26 games, scoring eight tries. This season, he has been a handful for NRL rivals, averaging 116 metres and 13 runs per game and managing 150-plus running metres four times in 2013.

There are times when sacking a player can be terminal but it has been the making of Gagai. "I'm not sure what happened to Dane at Brisbane but he's been fantastic since he arrived," Gidley said.

"Sometimes sacking a guy can be the best thing for them, taking them out of their comfort zone. Since Dane has come here he has been sensational.

"He is a really talented young player. He's got a lot of strikepower and I was quite amazed how well he settled. He hadn't played a lot of centre before he came here, it can be a difficult spot to defend so he's transitioned really well in a foreign position. Off the field, he's also fitted in."