Zac Hosking was an unwanted Knights reserve-grade player little more than a year ago.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Now, after a "whirlwind" 12 months and four NRL games for Brisbane, he is about to join back-to-back premiers, the Penrith Panthers.
"It's sort of hard to believe the position I'm in," Hosking told the Newcastle Herald.
"I've just signed a two-year deal with the team that's been the best in the comp the last three years, well certainly the last two years, and with a great opportunity to take the spot of a guy who is moving on.
"I might be playing [NSW] Cup here or there, but ... the gates of opportunity have opened up for me from only playing a handful of games and showing what I can do."
Unable to crack a start in first grade at the Knights, Hosking - the son of former Manly player David "The Mule" Hosking - nearly gave up his NRL dream last year.
But he didn't want to die wondering and took up an offer to train with the Broncos last summer and play with Wynnum-Manly in the Queensland Cup this year.
It wasn't an easy decision to head interstate given he and his partner had steady jobs in Newcastle and had ripped apart their house for renovations.
It's a move that has paid dividends.
"We spoke to [Penrith] and a few other clubs as well, but it's hard to turn a club like Penrith down," Hosking said.
"It was a two-year deal, everything I've always wanted was right there in front of me.
"When a club like that is throwing that in front of you, you've got to take it before it goes."
Penrith sought a Zoom meeting with Hosking the week after he debuted for Brisbane in round 17.
It "flattered" the 25-year-old, who had toiled away for years in reserve grade while working full-time as a carpenter.
Despite having offers from other clubs, including a better one financially from Canberra, he opted to join the Panthers.
"The difference in money shouldn't be the deciding factor at this stage of my career," Hosking, a Central Newcastle junior, said.
"I want to go to the best club where I'll get the best coaching.
"There's not too many people who go to Penrith and come out of it as a worse player or with a worse contract."
Hosking played 80 minutes in the back-row in three of four of his NRL games for Brisbane, coming off the bench once.
He was 18th man on multiple occasions and spent the second-half of the season training with the top squad.
"That back half of the year was a lot better than I thought it was going to be," he said. "It put a bit of belief in me that I can mix with the guys at that level. I wasn't shy of a tackle or a run in any of the games. It just makes you realise that it's not the big and scary competition that you think it is.
"It's a step up in speed and physicality, but it's not something that we're not used to anyway, as footballers."
Hosking has been given no guarantees at Penrith.
"The conversations I had with Ivan [Cleary] and Matt Cameron, the CEO, on that call - I think both parties were pretty happy with what each other had to say," he said.
"It seems like I'll fit in pretty well down there as an effort-sort of player, not your flashiest, flick-pass, fancy-footwork or speedy player. I'm just a bit of a grinder and a worker, and it seems like that's what they want, so it's a good fit."
Penrith have lost Viliame Kikau to the Bulldogs and Apisai Koroisau to the Tigers, and depending on how the dominos fall Hosking believes he can fight his way into the side.
He isn't planning on being a bit-part squad player.
"There will be a bit of a battle between a few guys to take Viliame Kikau's spot," he said.
"They've signed Luke Garner from the Tigers as well, and he is ahead of me experience-wise. But they've said there is not a great deal of juniors coming through in the back-row.
"I don't want to go down there and play reserve grade all year.
There's every chance I could, and if I'm realistic I might at the start, but I'll give myself every chance to be in that 17 in round one.
"I certainly believe I can if I nail this preseason and the trials."
Asked whether he wished he got a chance to play NRL at the Knights, Hosking said he was more than content with how things had played out.
"If I did, I probably wouldn't be in this position," he said.
"It's made for a pretty good story now, and a story that I'm proud of - not giving up on it and moving 1000 kms away to finally get a crack.
"It probably wouldn't have been as sweet if it happened earlier at the Knights.
"Two years in the nursery of Penrith, I'm excited to see what sort of player I can be by the end of my term."
IN THE NEWS:
- Fish in Lake Macquarie face big changes when the Eraring and Vales Point coal-fired power stations shut down
- Electric vehicle charging grants for Newcastle and Hunter sites in NSW government 'Drive electric NSW EV fast charging' program
- WesTrac executive Danielle Bull named Women In Industry mentor of the year
- More than $700,000 on offer to Hunter community organisations from Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation
WHAT DO YOU THINK? We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Newcastle Herald website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.
