Corey Thompson extends his Tigers contract after stellar start to 2018
COREY Thompson has built his NRL career on never giving up and he’s been rewarded for that perseverance with a contract extension with the Tigers.
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COREY Thompson has been rewarded for his blazing start to the season with a one-year extension at the Wests Tigers.
The 27-year-old Thompson cut short his time in England for another shot at the NRL, even if it meant just being a ‘’water boy”, and will now stay put at the joint venture until at least the end of next season.
It is just reward for a bloke who learned all about hard work and perseverance from Saturday’s rivals Melbourne.
Thompson told the remarkable story on Tuesday about how a three-day ‘’torture camp’’ with the Storm had stayed with him all these years.
After an impressive 2012 season in the Queensland Cup, Thompson and Cody Walker were invited south to complete the entire pre-season with Craig Bellamy’s stars.
Second-tier salary cap constraints means Thompson was cut loose at the end of that summer, but the memories — and lessons learned under gun No. 1 Billy Slater — have shaped the player he is today.
The eeriest moment was being told by a couple of army officers to drink a can of Coke and eat a Snickers, then hold a metal pole in complete darkness at 2am without nodding off.
“You’d be standing there on this sugar rush, you couldn’t see anyone, it was pitch black, and these guys were watching from about 200m away, making sure you didn’t fall asleep,’’ Thompson said.
“It was my first professional pre-season, and it was tough.
“The torture camp went three days and I only slept for an hour and a half.
“We weren’t allowed talk. We could only talk to each using ‘code names’.
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“It was a couple of army dudes yelling at you for three days.’’
Thompson became mentally and physically tough.
He has been one of many Tigers players prepared to have a serious dig for his teammates, which explains the Tigers fairytale start to the season.
Had it not been for a dud penalty in golden point against Brisbane, the Tigers would be undefeated.
Thompson is making the most of his NRL second coming. His original deal was worth the minimum $95,000, but his extension much more reflective of his untapped ability.
Like Walker, who was also a late bloomer when he debuted at South Sydney, Thompson encouraged other youngsters to not give up on their dream if they had not played first grade by their early twenties.
“If you look at Billy Slater, he’s 34, and even if you debut at 24, if you look after yourself you can still end up playing ten years in first grade, and that’s a massive achievement,’’ Thompson said.
“A lot of players give up if they haven’t made it by 20 or 22. I think everyone should hang in there if they want to make it.’’
Thompson reverted to the wing on Monday and bagged a double in the victory over the Eels, and will be tasked with stopping former Tigers speedster Josh Addo-Carr this weekend as part of the Mt Smart Stadium double-header.