965 days in wilderness worth it for Tiger’s NRL return
Scott Bailey |
Patrick Herbert spent three years making peace with the fact his NRL career was over, before receiving the most unlikely lifeline from Benji Marshall.
An emotional Herbert completed one of rugby league’s great feelgood stories on Sunday, scoring a try in Wests Tigers’ big win over Newcastle and setting up another in his first professional game in 965 days.
Initially signed to join French club Catalans Dragons in the Super League for 2023, Herbert’s move fell over when he suffered a serious Achilles injury while recovering from an ACL tear.
That left him without a deal, playing for Dapto in the Illawarra league while working as an electrician and tradie in recent years.
“The dream was faded,” Herbert, who played 59 games for the Warriors and Gold Coast between 2019 and 2022, said.
“I had no chips on the table. So I just ended up playing local league and I was happy to do that and working full-time.
“I was at peace with where I was at in life.
“I backed my ability, but I didn’t have that person in my corner until Benji called me.”
Herbert and Marshall’s link goes back to Whakatane on the north island of New Zealand, where both grew up and the latter went to school with Herbert’s relatives.
They were at St George Illawarra at the same time, with Herbert under-20s captain and Marshall a marquee signing, before playing together at Maori All Stars.
Herbert’s lifeline came last November when Marshall saw a live stream of a Maori tournament and recognised Herbert as man of the match for Kotahitanga.
Within weeks the 29-year-old was at Tigers training, albeit after initially thinking he’d received a prank call from Marshall while sitting on an excavator.
“Benji just said, look, ‘I’ve got a six-week trial for you’,” Herbert recounted.
“I just took it with both hands. I was like, ‘man, this is my last-ditch effort’.”
That six-week trial has since turned into a two-year deal, with Marshall lauding the outside back’s game and perseverance on Sunday.
For Herbert, the emotion of Sunday and four-year journey didn’t hit until after fulltime at Campbelltown.
There was a tear of happiness when his three sons came on the field at fulltime, with the youngest, Chance, only just born when Herbert last played NRL.
The centre is no guarantee to keep his spot against Brisbane next week with Taylan May a chance to return, but Herbert can now again be at peace with whatever comes next.
“I’m happy,” he said.
“That four years I had out of the game made me more grateful to just be around it.
“If it doesn’t work, if I don’t get picked, it’s no big deal. Just patience is a virtue that I learn on my time off.”
AAP