Son of Sironen starting to make a name for himself

OF all the things Tigers prodigy Curtis Sironen can do, it's defence that matters most.

Josh Massoud

less than 2 min read

June 9, 2012 - 12:00AM

DailyTelegraph

OF all the things Tigers prodigy Curtis Sironen can do, it's defence that matters most.

And with last night's result in the balance, the 18-year-old son of club great Paul Sironen got no better opportunity to measure his tender progress.

Sensing a comeback win with his side trailing 10-6, Storm giant Sika Manu spotted Sironen and bowled straight at him from point-blank range.

What happened next was probably the most pleasing thing to come out of the 80 minutes - not least of all because it essentially secured victory.

Sironen stopped Manu in his tracks and from there the Tigers held on.

"He picked me out a few times and I tried to get up in his face," Sironen said.

In just his third first-grade outing, the Dundas Shamrocks junior is quickly looking the part under the stewardship of halves partner Benji Marshall.

He ignited several Tigers breaks on the right-hand edge of Marshall and also kicked more often than over the previous fortnight.

"I'm a runner of the ball, but the thing I really want to work on is my defence," Sironen said. "I defend alongside Chris Lawrence and he has taught me a few things."

Marshall, however, is Sironen's primary sounding board.

"It's easier when I've got Benji telling me what to do because I don't have to overplay my hand," Sironen said.

"He controls where the ruck is moving and I just try to get outside him."

The Tigers have been protective of past youngsters such as Lawrence, but Sironen - despite his lineage - appears completely at ease with the attention that his surname inevitably invites.

"I'm proud of my name and I'm comfortable at the club," he said.