Wellington captain-coach Justin Toomey-White doesn't know exactly what position Blake Ferguson will play when he makes his return for the Cowboys this weekend.
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That and what happens on the field is lower on his list of priorities when it comes to the former NRL star.
Ferguson, a former Australian representative who played 250 NRL matches, confirmed his return home to the Cowboys this week and will run out in the maroon and white for the first time since 2007 on Sunday when Wellington hosts Forbes in the Peter McDonald Premiership (PMP).
There's a huge amount of excitement about what Ferguson will bring to the Cowboys and while Toomey-White is all too aware some will be talking his side up as premiership contenders now, there's much more to the signing than his on-field impact.
"Having someone the calibre of Blake back home and giving back to community, where it all started, it's amazing," Toomey-White said.
Toomey-White and the Cowboys' new-look committee has already put a huge amount of work into improving the standing of the club on and off the field in the past year.
Last year's struggles - where the club battled for sponsors and playing jerseys and the first grade side won one game all season - is firmly in the rear-view mirror and it's all about the rebuild.
As much as there's a desire for success on the field, Toomey-White wants to improve things off it first and foremost.
"It comes back to our kids," he said.
"We talk about having great people off the field and on the field will take care of itself.
"To have idols like him [Ferguson] back at the club and to have our kids and our babies able to look up to him wearing the maroon and white colours now on a week-to-week basis and stay back at watch him train, it's just an awesome feeling.
"It's going to be a great day on Sunday."
Plenty of work went into securing the marquee signing and Ferguson and Toomey-White had been in contact regularly in recent months while negotiations were also needed with Macarthur club Thirlmere, who the powerhouse outside back initially signed with this year.
Ferguson played two matches for Thirlmere to start the season but, having been making regular trips west to visit family at Wellington, the decision to move back home was soon made.
A former NRL player running out for Wellington is nothing new - Nathan Merritt and Timana Tahu have done it in recent years - but Ferguson's presence in the town, where he grew up, makes this a far bigger signing.
"He's one of our own," Toomey-White said.
"He's a Wello boy and you move things and make things happen for players like him.
"Not just because of his playing credentials, but he's a Wello boy through and through and to be able to have him back involved in the club and back living on country for now, as long as he chooses to be home, is going to be amazing and it's just awesome to be able to have him back in the maroon and white."
The news of Ferguson's deal spread like wildfire within the bush footy community.
Group 11 secretary and PMP board member Paul Loxley was another who was delighted by the news.
"It's great and it's good for Wello," Loxley said.
"It's great for Justin. He and people like Julie Blackhall there at Wellington have bent over backwards to help the club.
"If he (Ferguson) can help and lift the club it will be a wonderful thing for them, given where they've come from last year."
The chance to be with family played a huge role in Ferguson's decision to return home.
Wello is home to all of us. We've chased our rugby league careers and did what we had to do but now there's the opportunity to come back home and live on country and to give back to football...
- Justin Toomey-White
Toomey-White said one of the most special aspects of it will be Ferguson's grandparents, who raised him for much of his childhood, and the chance for them to now watch him play live.
The Sydney Roosters premiership winner is also set to have brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews at Kennard Park on Sunday and that family connection is something which means a huge amount to the strong number of Indigenous players within the Cowboys.
Toomey-White is someone who made the move to Sydney and spent time playing with the Wyong Roos but returning home was always on his mind and it was the same case for Ferguson.
"A lot of our Aboriginal players move away to fulfil that [dream] and they always give back to community and this is his chance," Toomey-White said.
"It's home. Wello is home to all of us. We've chased our rugby league careers and did what we had to do but now there's the opportunity to come back home and live on country and to give back to football and to our town that paved the way for us to live the lives we do today."
The thought of what could be possible on the field has entered Toomey-White's mind.
There is already a sense of excitement around the Cowboys as there's been strong numbers across the senior sides and the first grade started the season with back-to-back wins before a narrow loss to perennial heavyweights Dubbo CYMS.
The Cowboys have the opportunity to keep the pressure on CYMS at the top of the Group 11 ladder this weekend when they take on Forbes, the PMP's defending premiers.
"All the boys have put in and put us in the position we are today. The club is thriving at the moment and we're getting better every single week on and off the field," he said.
The captain-coach is also all too aware the signing of someone like Ferguson has many already increasing their expectations of the side this year.
"That's going to be the talk from others but we know, within our squad, there's a lot of hard work still to be done," Toomey-White added.
"But for him to be involved and give our younger players that bit of spark and extra bit of belief can do wonders.
"He's a great addition to the club but it's just awesome to have him back in the community."
No decision has been made about where Ferguson will play on Sunday in his return.
Ferguson played in the centres or on the wing throughout his NRL career and his thoughts on where he is comfortable will be taken into consideration but the current dynamics within the in-form team are also hugely important.
Regardless of where the former Australian representative lines up on Sunday it's expected to be "a real spectacle".
"I'd just urge everyone to get down there for an awesome afternoon," Toomey-White said.
"Forbes are an awesome team and they're the reigning premiers so we know what they'll bring over and they're going to be up for occasion as well.
"We know we'll have our hands full but it makes for a great afternoon at Kennard Park."
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Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
