With 12 tries in his last seven games, its fair to say that Wests Tigers Under 20s fullback Kurtis Rowe knows his way to the line.
His late season purple patch of form has resulted in the New Zealand-born speedster ranking equal first on the NYC top try scorer list along with Canberras Jonathon Rueben.
Rowe has scored a total of 24 tries in 24 games this season, including two hat-tricks and four doubles. Former fullback Jake Mullaney holds the club record for most tries in the NYC, scoring 29 in his first season in 2009.
The former Keebra Park student believes a mid-season stint on the wing sparked his impressive run of form heading into Sundays Elimination Final.
To be honest I just wanted to secure that fullback spot by playing consistent footy, I didnt want to be pushed out to the wing again, Rowe said.
I wanted to secure that spot, that motivated me towards the end of the season.
I am happy just to be on the field but my preferred position is fullback.
NRL coach Mick Potter has played a key factor in Rowes stellar season, with the two-time Dally M award winner also playing fullback during his career.
Mick and I have had one-on-one chats throughout the season, Rowe said.
He helps me with my game, he knows the fullback role really well.
Mid-season he helped a lot, we had a few meetings and he talked me through what to improve on.
Marking up against the Broncos in this weekends elimination final at ANZ Stadium, Rowe is amongst five players in the Wests Tigers Under 20s side who will look to win back-to-back premierships.
Rowe, Kyle Lovett, Nathan Brown, Brenden Santi and Matt Mulcahy were all part of the premiership-winning team in 2012 and will take the field on Sunday morning looking to stay alive in the finals race.
I think we have a team that can go all the way, we have got a few things we can improve but I am confident, Rowe said.
I would love to win a second premiership, it would be nice to get another one under the belt.
This season will be Rowes last in the Under 20s competition, with Wests Tigers supporters sure to see plenty more of the young gun in the coming years.
Im looking forward to 2014, I want to improve by working on getting bigger and faster in the off-season and hopefully crack NRL at some point, Rowe said.
That is my goal.
His late season purple patch of form has resulted in the New Zealand-born speedster ranking equal first on the NYC top try scorer list along with Canberras Jonathon Rueben.
Rowe has scored a total of 24 tries in 24 games this season, including two hat-tricks and four doubles. Former fullback Jake Mullaney holds the club record for most tries in the NYC, scoring 29 in his first season in 2009.
The former Keebra Park student believes a mid-season stint on the wing sparked his impressive run of form heading into Sundays Elimination Final.
To be honest I just wanted to secure that fullback spot by playing consistent footy, I didnt want to be pushed out to the wing again, Rowe said.
I wanted to secure that spot, that motivated me towards the end of the season.
I am happy just to be on the field but my preferred position is fullback.
NRL coach Mick Potter has played a key factor in Rowes stellar season, with the two-time Dally M award winner also playing fullback during his career.
Mick and I have had one-on-one chats throughout the season, Rowe said.
He helps me with my game, he knows the fullback role really well.
Mid-season he helped a lot, we had a few meetings and he talked me through what to improve on.
Marking up against the Broncos in this weekends elimination final at ANZ Stadium, Rowe is amongst five players in the Wests Tigers Under 20s side who will look to win back-to-back premierships.
Rowe, Kyle Lovett, Nathan Brown, Brenden Santi and Matt Mulcahy were all part of the premiership-winning team in 2012 and will take the field on Sunday morning looking to stay alive in the finals race.
I think we have a team that can go all the way, we have got a few things we can improve but I am confident, Rowe said.
I would love to win a second premiership, it would be nice to get another one under the belt.
This season will be Rowes last in the Under 20s competition, with Wests Tigers supporters sure to see plenty more of the young gun in the coming years.
Im looking forward to 2014, I want to improve by working on getting bigger and faster in the off-season and hopefully crack NRL at some point, Rowe said.
That is my goal.
