NRL 2024: The special moment Trent Barrett handed fellow Temora boy Charlie Guymer his Parramatta Eels NRL debut

It was a full circle moment for Parramatta’s interim coach Trent Barrett who is from Temora himself, revealing the heartwarming moment he handed an Eels debut to the town’s latest NRL product.

Parramatta interim coach Trent Barrett has revealed the touching moment he told fellow Temora boy Charlie Guymer he’d make his NRL debut against South Sydney on Thursday night.

Guymer, 20, has been a rising star of the Eels system, captaining the SG Ball team to last year’s title and now has played every game of NSW Cup this year to finally earn his first-grade debut.

It was a special privilege for Barrett, who has known Guymer “forever”.

“He was excited, I sat him down in the office and I said ‘do you know how many first-graders or NRL players have come out of Temora?’ And he said, ‘I think there’s 12’, and I said, ‘well there’s about to be 13’,” Barrett said.

“He was pretty surprised. I am just really happy for him. I’ve known him for a long time and know the family really well, so there’ll be a lot of people in Temora who will be proud of him.

Parramatta youngster Charlie Guymer will make his NRL debut this week. Picture: NRL Imagery

“I’ve known him forever, really

“I know his mum and dad really well, and his uncle Billy was my best mate at school. I spoke to them this morning and they’re all really excited.

“It’s pretty special for me to be able to give that to him, but that aside, he deserves it.”

Guymer will the latest name in a long list of players to come out of Temora, including Barrett and NSW Origin stars Zac Lomax, Angus Crichton and Liam Martin.

A skilful lock or second-rower, Guymer is still eligible for Jersey Flegg along with Blaize Talagi and Matt Arthur who also earned their NRL debut this year as well as Ethan Sanders.

Charlie Guymer on the charge for the Blues under-19s. Picture: NRL Imagery

He’s averaging 101 running metres a game, but last week made 146 metres and 27 tackles in 71 minutes against the Knights in reserve grade.

“He’s a good defender, he’s a tough kid and he’s got the skills so he’ll help us, he’s got good leg speed and he’s a different body type to what we’ve got in our pack,” Barrett said.

“He’s ready.

“He’s handled NSW Cup and he was a pretty popular choice when I mentioned it to a few of the senior blokes when I mentioned I’d be picking him. He’s had a really good year.”

Guymer is one of two players named to debut for the Eels this week with Jake Tago named on the edge to replace the injured Maika Sivo.

Tago, 25, is a centre or winger and has played NSW Cup for North Sydney, Penrith and Souths before finally getting his NRL chance with the Eels this week.