Having started 2014 on the sidelines due to injury, Wests Tigers young gun Curtis Sironen says he’s feeling fit and ready to deliver his best year yet in 2015.
Entering just his fourth season of first-grade football after making his debut halfway through 2012, Sironen says he’s excited just to be ready to take the field in Round 1 having gone through a nasty run of injuries in his short career so far.
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The Dundas Shamrocks junior has already gone through a shoulder reconstruction in his debut season, a foot injury in the 2014 Auckland Nines that saw him miss the opening 12 rounds of the year, and then off-season surgery at the end of 2014 — all to get him right for 2015. And while it’s certainly been a less-than-ideal run for the City Origin representative, Sironen says he’s feeling better than he ever has before and is ready to finally deliver on that feeling.
“The body feels really good now,” he said earlier this week.
"Now it’s all about building some match fitness for me and hopefully getting some confidence going with the boys with a couple of good performances to start the year.
“I haven’t had any niggles or anything this year. I’m just doing all my extras and working hard with our Strength and Conditioning staff here.
“To be honest, I haven’t even been worried about injuries at all.
“They [injuries] have been a big hindrance in me getting on the field so far.
“I was really disappointed last year; I thought I had a really good pre-season and then to suffer that injury in the Nines was disappointing.
“It’s been good to have all the new programs here at the Club with JT, and injury prevention has been the big focus for me. I’m just trying and focused on staying on the field and I’m looking forward to building big from there.
With off-season departures and the early retirement of Liam Fulton, Sironen will start 2015 as the Club’s most experienced back-rower — a seemingly daunting task for a 21-year-old local junior with just 38 NRL games to his name. Not that it worries Sironen too much, who instead is relishing the opportunity to finally play alongside close friends Luke Brooks, James Tedesco and Mitch Moses, and confident of the systems that new Coach Jason Taylor has in place.
“I’m pretty confident of the structures that we’ve got here at the Club,” he said.
“We’ve all really good on board with what he’s [Jason Taylor] brought here.
“All of the boys are really excited for the year ahead.
“Our biggest issue last year was consistency — we’d come out and knock off one of the top teams and then struggle the week after — so that’s one of the things we’re aiming to fix and hopefully get some consistency week-in and week-out.
“I think JT can really help my game, which is exciting for me," Sironen enthused.
“The start of the year last year when Broosky and Teddy were out there killing it, I was on the sideline, which was really hard for me to watch.
“I’ve grown up playing with those guys and with Mitch, so it’ll be good that we’re all out there together and playing first-grade for the same time.
“It’s an exciting time for us and an exciting time for the Club.
“We’re all ready to go and now all the focus is on getting that win in Round 1.”
Wests Tigers will open their 2015 NRL season when they take on the Gold Coast Titans at Cbus Super Stadium on Saturday, March 7 at 7:00pm.
