Every player's dream is to earn a starting jersey each week and for Titans back-rower Beau Fermor, it's looking like that ambition is set to come true this season.
With plenty of competition amongst the squad in the pre-season for that elusive run-on edge forward position, the 23-year-old is tipped to win the battle and begin Round 1 as a starter after his selection to fill that role in this Saturday's major trial against the Warriors at Redcliffe.
‘I’m really proud to be in the starting 13’ – Fermor
"I’ve had a few conversations with Justin and I get an opportunity to lockdown that spot this weekend," Fermor said.
"Every footy player wants to start, so to be in the starting 13... I’m really proud of it and it’s a bit of a reward for hard work, but I’ve got to put it out on the field this weekend.
"I’m excited footy’s back. It’s been a long time since my last game, so I’m not putting too much pressure on myself."
"I just want to go out there and do my job and punch out as many minutes as I can."
The work ethic the 23-gamer refers to hasn't gone unnoticed at Parkwood during the off-season, with the Titans this week revealing he is one of the fittest in the squad, topping the charts in the 1.2 kilometre shuttle run with a time of four minutes, 30 seconds and earning the title as the second fastest player among the group with a speed of 35.5 kilometres per hour on the radar gun.
Wanting to continue on the good form shown at the backend of last season, Fermor has also worked on understanding his role within the team.
"Just building on what I did last year [has been my goal] and I think I’ve got a lot better at doing the little things right and not making silly errors," Fermor said.
"I’ve learnt my role a lot more and know where I need to be there and I just feel like I’ve been building on that this pre-season and doing it pretty well."
Offering a point of difference to his powerhouse second-row partner David Fifita - who is looking lean and mean for the 2022 season ahead - the Maroons hopeful enjoys the variety both edges provide against the opposition.
"We all know what Dave can do so to have him out there as long as possible is only going to help our team and help us win games," Fermor said.
"With his fitness this year, I know he’s been working really hard on getting fit and being able to be that 80-minute player. I think he’s done that and I’m looking forward to seeing him run out on the weekend and most importantly in the round games to see what he can do for us.
"Patty (Herbert) is a very powerful player and Dave is the same as well [on the right edge]. I guess you don’t want the same-same both sides.
"It’s a lot harder to defend when you’ve got different things coming at you all the time. I think with the two edges that we’ve got and the 13 that we’ve named, we’ve got a lot of strike power as well."
With defence on top of the agenda for Fermor over the pre-season, the ability to train alongside his fellow left edge teammates has bolstered his confidence ahead of the Warriors clash.
Match: Warriors v Titans
Round 2 -
home Team
Warriors
6th Position
away Team
Titans
11th Position
Venue: Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast
"That was probably the biggest area I wanted to improve on. I’ve been doing a lot of work with Jimmy Dymock and Justo about [defence] and Justin had a conversation with me about that in the pre-season to lock down that left edge spot," Fermor said.
"That gave me a lot of confidence and just being able to train alongside AJ (Brimson) and Brian (Kelly) and having familiarity around that has helped me a lot.
"I know what they’re going to do and they know what I’m going to do and that’s helped me calm myself down and do my role."
Although edging out incumbent edge forward Kevin Proctor for the starting #11 jersey for this weekend's clash, the young back-rower will still have the experienced campaigner on speed dial to help develop his game.
"I don’t know if I’ve got the jump on him but Kevvie is still the first person I go to if I need advice or anything like that," Fermor said.
"Obviously, I want to be starting and he wants to be starting too. It’s healthy competition and it’s only going to make him play better as well."
