IMPACT player - it's a term that has a nice ring to it for Cooper Earsman.
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After being a member of the under 18 St Pat's side which made last year's Tom Nelson Premiership grand final, this season the young back rower has been making an impact off the bench in the Peter McDonald Premiership.
Those 15-20 minutes that Earsman has been getting have been a challenge, but it's exactly the sort of role he'd hoped to fill after he graduated from juniors.
"I'm loving it," he said.
"It was my goal at the end of last year, once I finished 18s I knew I wanted to get a spot in first grade, whether it was on the bench or not.
"I only played 18s last year, I didn't play any reggies. I got offered a few times, but it was always after a pretty tough game in 18s and that was my focus given how well we were going in that."
Earsman played at lock on grand final day last year when the Saints went down fighting to Nyngan.
He also lined up at lock in Western under 21s grand final earlier this season and was amongst the Saints to score in the 30-28 win over the Orange Orangutans.
Both those games were fast-paced, physical encounters, but what Earsman has experienced in the PMP has been another level up from that.
Still, from the moment he first got his hands on the ball in round one against Nyngan, Earsman hasn't felt nervous about the job he's now being asked to do.
"It's a lot quicker, the ruck speed, the line speed, everything, it's just 10 times quicker than anything I've played in before," he said.
"The contact, because I played in a pretty physical comp last year, coming off the bench in first grade, I'm sort of used to it now.
"Coming off the bench in that first game against Nyngan I was bit terrified, but after my first run, after my first tackle, it flushed out all the nerves.
"I'm just getting out there and whatever [assistant coach] Kev Grimshaw has been telling me before I go on, I just make sure I do that."
It's a lot quicker, the ruck speed, the line speed, everything, it's just 10 times quicker than anything I've played in before.
- Cooper Earsman
Earsman was deployed in the second row against both Nyngan and Wellington, but in the Saints' most recent match - a Bathurst derby against Panthers - he spent time in the front row.
He learned plenty from that experience.
"I've come on to play second row every game except for Panthers, because we lost Boothy [Nic Booth] pretty early I came on the middle," he said.
"That was a bit of a eye-opener how much of a jump it was even though it was one position wider than the second row.
"That was a very physical game, probably the most physical game I've played in to date. Their pack is just so mobile and strong, they're definitely not the biggest pack in the comp, but they're all solid boys and they've got a pretty good bench as well."
It was the Panthers who won that match, meaning the Saints find themselves currently sitting eighth on the ladder.
It's a spot Earsman and his team-mates want to improve on this Saturday when taking on the currently winless Lithgow.
Though Earsman admits he doesn't know a lot about what the Wolves bring to a PMP clash, he knows better than to underestimate them, especially given the game will be played at Tony Luchetti Sportsground.
"The only time I've really played Lithgow the last couple of years was last year in 18s. When I was in 16s for the last couple of years they couldn't really put a side together," he said.
"Last year in 18s they were probably the smallest side in the comp, but they stuck it to us the first game.
"Lithgow in Lithgow is tough too, it's 10 degrees colder when you get on that field."
No matter what Saturday's match brings, Earsman will no doubt learn from the experience.
He's soaking up all the advice he's been getting while working alongside quality players with representative experience.
"It's been really good. Zac [Merritt] obviously, he's been awesome, Jackson Brien has been real good with me and Willie Wright, he's definitely taken me under his wing," the 19-year-old said.
"It's a great feeling having them help me, especially knowing Willie has won a few comps. Even when I come on and I'm outside Willie or outside Noah [Griffiths], they're just smart footy players who know what they're talking about.
"Zac has brought in a couple of new standards at training, so whether we oppose or whatever it is, it's always 100 percent. You've got to be on your A game all the time in this squad."
Bringing his A game is exactly what Earsman is aiming to do against Lithgow when Saturday's match at Tony Luchetti Sportsground kicks off at 2.45pm.
- ST PAT'S: 1 Ashley Cosgrove, 2 Matt Beattie, 3 Jak Colgate, 4 Jackson Brien, 5 Will Poole, 6 Willie Wright, 7 Noah Griffiths, 8 Luke Single, 9 Hayden Bolam, 10 Zac Merritt, 11 Cooper Akroyd, 12 Caleb Wardman, 13 Aaron Mawhinney, 14 Ryan Small, 15 Haze Reweti, 16 Josh Hanrahan, 17 Cooper Earsman.
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