Following the departure of Luciano Leilua, the Cowboys had a position to fill in their Top 30 roster before Round 1 and former Super League prop Thomas Mikaele made sure it was his.
Having released Leilua on Friday before fellow edge-forward Coen Hess went down with a suspected knee injury, a shining light emerged for North Queensland at Seiffert Oval on Sunday.
Scoring two tries and breaking six tackles in a starring performance off the bench in the victory over the Raiders, Mikaele was all but instantly promoted from a development deal to a Top 30 contract.
“I think for me, coming in, there wasn’t any sort of pressure to perform. I don't think many people expected me to do anything,” Mikaele said post-match.
“I've been working on a few things at training and just listening to the coaching staff and what they need out of me.
“So I think for me it's just keep working and if I can get that second phase going for them, then my job is done. But I set the bar high for myself now, maybe I shouldn’t have performed like that!"
A two-time Australian Schoolboy, Mikaele made his debut for Wests Tigers as a 21-year-old in 2019 and capped 66 NRL games before taking up an opportunity in the UK Super League.
After signing a one-year-deal with the Titans in 2023 before finishing the season with the Warrington Wolves, the Auckland-born forward admitted his career was at a crossroads before North Queensland handed him an NRL lifeline.
“I had bounced around throughout my career and wasted some opportunities but my mindset early on in the pre-season was I was going back to England and then it didn’t happen," Mikaele said.
“One week I thought I was going to be in Sydney and I was talking to a couple of different clubs but I was fortunate enough the Cows gave me a lifeline and it's paying off so far.
"So I got to pre-season pretty late, it was probably two weeks into December, but the boys have been very welcoming and everyone is hard working, so I just slotted straight in.
"My partner and I have two kids, they’re four and one and because I've bounced around the last couple of years and it's a pretty unconventional career, we've talked about wanting to settle down and obviously with the Cows would be great."
Mikaele stars for the Cowboys
Coach Todd Payten also seemed to agree the new signing was paying dividends, reflecting post-match on Mikaele’s impact up front.
“I thought he was really good when he came off the bench in the second half, carried the ball strong and provided some second phase play which I really liked,” Payten said on Sunday.
“And a middle forward going over for a try or two, pity it doesn't count for the nudie run because it's only a trial but he provided us with a point of difference which I liked.”
Crossing the stripe twice on Sunday, Mikaele could have fooled any fan he’s a forward who knows how to find the tryline, however in 66 games the former Wests Tiger never scored a try.
But the athletic forward said he is determined to make sure he's not participating in the Mad Monday traditions at the end of 2024.
“I couldn't remember when the last time I scored two was, I think it was in U/13s or something,” he said.
"But I think as a middle, whenever you cross the white line it's always good.
"And the first first-grade try I scored was over in England. So hopefully I can get one in a real NRL game now."
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