Former Penrith Panther turned Rugby Sevens gun Tyrone Phillips keen to write new chapter
He’s the former NRL player with a new field of dreams and a determination to make the most of his second chance as a footballer.
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Former Penrith Panthers winger Tyrone Phillips isn’t interested in writing a tale of redemption, it’s a whole new storyline he’s after.
The international fullback has learned in the last year to be grateful for every opportunity that comes his way.
Grateful for second chances and grateful for the ability to write a new, very different chapter in his football career.
Grateful to tell the world that he’s not done as an elite player. Grateful to show he’s not the man he used to be.
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It’s what the former NRL rugby league player and Fijian international is hoping to do on a new field of dreams with a bunch of old and new mates from across the country.
Phillips, from Paddington, is now playing with graduates of an extraordinary Rugby Australia program talent identifying athletes for potentially two Rugby Sevens contracts.
It has given kids from the bush a shot at a dream, kids from the outback their first experience of a city and people like Tyrone a crack at writing a new chapter in their lives.
Putting their past in the past and working on a better future.
I asked myself if I enjoyed it, what I was doing. In the end I realised I wasn’t having fun doing what I was doing
A future Phillips, 25, almost lost this year when charged with a mid-range drinking driving offence which lead to his resignation from the Panthers in April.
“I resigned. I got six months off the road and a fine,” said Phillips, embroiled in a sex tape scandal in the off-season.
“After I resigned I had three months off and I realised I hated my life and where I was going.
“It was an eye opener to walk away and to rejuvenate.
“I asked myself if I enjoyed it, what I was doing. In the end I realised I wasn’t having fun doing what I was doing.
“I had to satisfy so many people. The game was taking me away from myself.’’
Phillips, who played his junior footy with La Perouse, said he connected with family in the wake of his exit from the NRL, worked at the wharves at Port Botany as a forklift driver and received two phone calls which have put him back on the football field.
The first came when Phillips, who arrived at Penrith in 2018 after a stint at Canterbury, was invited to play for the Newtown Jets who he helped win the Canterbury Cup grand final last month.
The second was to tell him about the First Nations project, a squad formed and coached by former Australian Rugby Sevens assistant coach Jarred Hodges with the goal of fast-tracking players to the elite level of the game.
After trials, a squad selection and weeks of training, Phillips played his first games with the First Nations squad at the Western Sydney 7s event at Lidcombe on the weekend with men’s team finishing third.
“I loved it. I loved the speed, the awareness and the skills of the players. It was very fast and a lot of hard contract. I’m looking forward to playing more,’’ he said.
Phillips is now hoping he makes the team for the First Nation squads next tournament in Darwin this month.
His major goal is to secure one of two Rugby Sevens contracts up for grabs.
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“The mistakes I have made, I have my made and moved on,’’ Phillips said. “It’s how you bounce back that matters to me.
“Everyone makes mistakes. It’s what you do after that matters.”