If you see an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scot walk onto a training field, it’s highly likely you’re at the home of the Titans.
Fresh off earning his maiden cap for England in last year’s historic Ashes series, Gold Coast five-eighth AJ Brimson was hoping to again represent his mother’s homeland in the upcoming Rugby League World Cup.
“It was an unreal experience,” Brimson said.
“It was just something that was a new experience for me, international footy.
“It was awesome to be able to play in a series like an Ashes series and to play over there. To play for England, everything about it, it was an all-round good experience.
“Fingers crossed I can play in the World Cup for England.
“That would be a massive moment again for my career and it is something that is in the back of my mind.
“Obviously, right now, my sole focus is at the Titans, but you'd be lying if you didn't have a thought or two about the end of the year.”
A former Australia World Cup 9s representatives, an IRL tribunal last year ruled that Brimson could switch allegiances to represent his English heritage.
Last week, Kalyn Ponga followed suit, making a successful application to switch his international allegiance from Australia to New Zealand.
A recent changes to State of Origin eligibility rules also means that both former Maroons fullbacks now remain in contention to represent Queensland into the future.
“I'm probably a bit biased when I say I think it's good for the game, but I guess time will tell how it kind of all pans out," Brimson said.
“But for me personally, when I made the decision to represent England, it wasn't something that I thought was in the cards of being able to play Origin anyway.
“But, it's nice to be potentially available for Origin again.
“You make the decision and you're very excited to try and play for England, but then, you still come to when the Origin comes around and … it is tough to not even be in contention or be available to get selected.
“But I was still watching last year's series just as passionately and spraying all the Blues and things like that.”
At the Titans, there are many players from diverse backgrounds, from across the Pacific and Europe including Irish representative Jaimin Jolliffe and Scotland (as well as Australia, Samoa and Netherlands) eligible forward Jett Liu.
The club also host an annual multicultural evening where players showcase their culture through performance, but you won’t see Brimson on stage.
“Our club celebrates (being multicultural) really well,” Brimson said.
“We always do a massive multicultural night every year, where there's songs and dances, Samoa and Fiji … and then all the nice food and things like that.
“Me personally, definitely won't catch me up on the stage. But it's cool to see all the other cultures.
“It's something that the club does do really well at.”
Match: Cowboys v Titans
Round 3 -
home Team
Cowboys
16th Position
away Team
Titans
17th Position
Venue: Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Townsville
Match broadcasters:
- WatchNRL
