NRL 2021: The day that changed Storm star Ryan Papenhuyzen’s career
Billy Slater knows the day that the Ryan Papenhuyzen’s career changed forever. It was back in 2019 and the writing was on the wall for the then 20-year-old.
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Champion fullback Billy Slater knows exactly why Ryan Papenhuyzen will be the next Melbourne Storm captain.
The greatest fullback of the modern-era also knows why Papenhuyzen won the 2020 Clive Churchill Medal and why the former Dundas Shamrock will make his State of Origin debut for NSW later this year.
Slater, hailed by Storm coach Craig Bellamy as the figure of most influence on Papenhuyzen, even knows the day that the 22-year-old‘s career changed forever.
“It was at a training session at the end of the 2019 pre-season,” Slater said.
“It was my first year of retirement and I was working on my one day (as a consultant) with the Melbourne Storm.
“At that time for ‘Paps’ (Papenhuyzen) ... the writing was on the wall.”
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Papenhuyzen had signed with the Melbourne Storm from the Wests Tigers while he was still eligible for the under-20s, but spent the previous 2018 season playing senior footy in the Intrust Super Cup.
But now, just weeks away from the start of the 2019 season, Papenhuyzen was out of the picture.
At training, when it was time to run an opposed session, Jahrome Hughes would grab the starting fullback jersey that Slater had held for the better part of the previous 16-seasons.
Behind Hughes at fullback in the “other” team picked to run opposite Bellamy’s first-choice 17, was Scott Drinkwater.
Papenhuyzen?
He couldn’t make Bellamy’s first 17.
Instead, he was given the last available wing spot in the “other” team.
“There was a three-way battle for that fullback position and he (Papenhuyzen) found himself last in line,” Slater said.
“Jahrome Hughes was the fullback, Scott Drinkwater was then in when Jahrome wasn’t there, but Ryan was way out of the loop.
“As a player, you know when you’re a long way off.
“You’re training 13 on 13 and you’re on the wing, it’s pretty obvious.’’
Then came the exact moment Slater saw Papenhuyzen’s character.
Slater says he’s seen few players throughout his career with the level of determination that the rookie showed.
“A lot of players these days when they find they’ve got to work for something, or they’ve got to bide their time or find another way to make the team, they turn to another club or look for another way, rather than knuckle down and have a bit of perseverance to get out of it,’’ Slater said.
“And that’s one of the most impressive things about Ryan Papenhuyzen, is that he didn’t do that.
“He didn’t shy away from that challenge.
“He came to me and asked, ‘How can I put myself in a position to be picked — what more can I do?’
“That just showed his willingness to work through that.
“That’s a case of biting down on your mouthguard and saying, ‘OK, I’m going to find it one way or another’ and he did that
“He’s got great speed, he’s got great skill, but if ‘want’ was an attribute, that’s his greatest attribute.
“He had to work hard and he found himself an opportunity to play off the bench and then all of a sudden, Craig (Bellamy) learned he had to be out there for longer periods.”
From rounds four to 22 of the 2019 season, Bellamy used Papenhuzyen from the interchange bench in 13 games, twice at fullback and once at five-eighth.
In round 23, he wore the No.1 jumper — and it’s been his ever since.
“I still remember him (Papenhuyzen) going out there (from the bench in 2019) as an 80kg ruck-forward, that in itself, is impressive,” Slater said.
“That showed toughness.
“If he didn’t do that, he probably wouldn’t be pushing for a bench spot in State of Origin this year because people would be worried about that side of his game.
“But since he showed that, and since Craig Bellamy showed that courage to give him that shot, he went out and was so effective with it.‘’
Slater works one day a week with the Storm and in particular mentoring Papenhuyzen.
Papenhuyzen’s four tries in 11 minutes in the first half against the Broncos last weekend made it impossible for those of us watching on in admiration to not at least consider, are we watching the progression of another Billy Slater?
Slater wants little do with comparisons.
“There’s times that I have specifically left him alone,’’ Papenhuyzen said.
“You need people to develop by themselves, as much as you need to help them.
“The last thing I want Ryan Papenhuyzen to be is another version of me and try to turn him into my strengths.
“There‘s some areas in his game that I can see needs improvement in.
“And there‘s something he does really well, that you just want to highlight and celebrate with him.
“If I see something, it might be a little video I send to him.
“But what he’s doing and where he wants to go, that’s all ‘Paps’ because of his work-ethic.
“Paps is right up there with the most determined players I’ve ever seen.’’
‘No one goes out there to hurt players’: Kaufusi defends reputation
- Nick Smart
Melbourne Storm forward Felise Kaufusi has broken his silence to defend his on-field reputation, insisting he doesn’t go out there to hurt opposition players in the wake of a two-game ban.
Kaufusi, who returns on Saturday night against Canterbury, copped a barrage from sections of the media after an incident with Parramatta’s Ryan Matterson in Round 2 landed him in hot water.
The Queensland Origin winner’s elbow appeared to glance Matterson in a tackle, with the Eel then suffering concussion after his head hit the turf hard.
“It wasn’t my intention (to hurt him),” Kaufusi said.
“These things happen in footy.
“First and foremost, looking back it did look bad and the most important thing was his wellbeing.
“He has had concussions before and it’s a big thing in our game at the moment, so that’s the suspension I got and I just have to cop that on the chin.”
Kaufusi was adamant it was not his aim to hurt Matterson, labelling the contact as accidental.
“I love playing hard and aggressive and that’s my style of footy, but there’s no ill intention in it,” he said.
“I’m sure no one that plays our game of footy goes out there to try to hurt someone.
“Yes, be aggressive but you shouldn’t be playing the game if you’re going out there to try to put someone on the sidelines. That’s not the way to go about it.”
The 28-year-old said he was not affected by the negative coverage he received following the incident.
“It’s pretty lucky that down here in Melbourne we’re a bit sheltered from all the media, but my parents are in Queensland and they breathe footy everyday so they were watching it all and checking in with me and making sure I was OK,” he said.
“But I was honestly sheltered from it, but at the same time I knew I would cop some flak.”
Storm will on Saturday face the winless Bulldogs, with Kaufusi one of what could be multiple inclusions with hooker Harry Grant on the brink of a return from a knee injury.
“There’s nothing worse than being fully healthy and itching to get out there, because watching the boys from the sidelines makes everything feel longer,” Kaufusi said.
“It’s felt like forever but it is here now and I can’t wait.
“Any team that plays against the Storm always plays their best footy.
“It doesn’t matter what they’ve done the week before, they always turn up for us.
“We’re expecting a big battle (against the Bulldogs).”
The second-rower and father of three joined the Storm leadership group this season in his eighth year at the club.
He said he looked forward to instilling some knowledge upon the club’s youth brigade.
“It’s been good that I’ve finally graduated from the emerging leaders group,” he said.
“There’s nothing different I suppose, I’m just a bit older and more experienced.
“When I look around the room there’s a lot of young players coming through at the moment, so there’s a pretty gap between the seniors and the young.
“I’m just hoping I can help in any way, shape or form.”
Originally published as NRL 2021: The day that changed Storm star Ryan Papenhuyzen’s career
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