Gold Coast rookie Phillip Sami looks the bargain of the season after East Sunday triumph
TITANS hat-trick sensation Phillip Sami defied his family’s wishes and knocked back Melbourne super coach Craig Bellamy before making his mark in Gold Coast’s Easter Sunday boilover.
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TITANS hat-trick sensation Phillip Sami is the Gold Coast’s $5000 bargain who defied his family’s wishes and knocked back Melbourne super coach Craig Bellamy.
Sami bagged his first NRL hat-trick in his eighth match as the Titans stunned Brisbane 26-14 in an Easter Sunday boilover at Suncorp Stadium.
The 20-year-old Sami has been sensational on the wing for the Titans in 2018 after receiving a shot on confidence from new coach Garth Brennan.
He has locked up the left wing berth for the foreseeable future and has the potential to shift one spot in and become a long-term centre on the Gold Coast.
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Sami, a product of the Goodna Eagles, was chased by the Storm as a schoolboy, but pledged his allegiance to the under-20s Titans for just $5000 after being spotted by former recruitment manager Jamie Mathiou.
“I chose to come to the Gold Coast Titans because I thought there was more opportunity for me to play NRL,” Sami said.
“I’m very grateful I did. I don’t regret it.
“My family wasn’t happy. They wanted me to go to Melbourne Storm but mum said ‘do what makes you happy’. I chose the Titans and she was happy for me.”
Sami made his NRL debut under Neil Henry last year and one of Brennan’s first moves as Titans coach was to extend the Maroons under-20s representative’s contract until 2020.
“That boosted my confidence — I was obviously doing something right,” Sami said.
“When I heard he wanted to do that I thought ‘he obviously believes I can do something at this club’. That gave me confidence.
“When Round 1 started, there were injuries to Brenko Lee and Brendan Elliot and he sat down with me and said ‘you’re not in this team because of those injuries — you’re always in my team’.
“When he told me that, that really boosted my confidence and hopefully I can cement my spot on the left wing for the rest of the year.”
Sami has scored four tries in four matches this season but there is another facet of his game that is just as impressive.
The 97kg winger wants to run the ball at least 15 times every game and is currently averaging 16.8 carries a game. He ran 21 times for 161m against the Broncos, busted six tackles and set up a superb try for fellow winger Anthony Don with a clever kick.
“As a winger, we really don’t do much,” Sami said.
“It was a goal for me to get 15-plus carries in a game. When it comes time to put it under my wing then that’s what I’m going to do.
“I want to carry hard. It takes pressure off the forwards. They work really hard in the middle for us.
“I wanted to show Garth I was capable of playing first grade. He gave me a crack and I’m grateful for that.”
Brennan said Sami had impressed him since the day he arrived on the Gold Coast.
“I’ve been rapt from day one when I got here,” Brennan said.
“I was excited by the young guy and everything he was doing at training.
“He is a powerful thing and carries the ball strong. He gets us on the front foot with his carries.
“He’s a real prospect going forward. I’m really excited by how Sami is tracking along. He has been very consistent.”
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