Canberra Raiders forward Joe Tapine hopes the chance to join the New Zealand Test squad will fast-track his NRL development, revealing moving to the capital has helped him find stability in his life.
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But the secret to Tapine's rise from unknown potential to a Kiwi contender is in his diet after the 22-year-old cut back on his Caramello Koala guilty pleasures to emerge as an international player.
Tapine and Raiders winger Jordan Rapana were named in the New Zealand squad on Tuesday to play against Australia on October 15 and take part in the end of year Four Nations tour.
Tapine joined the Raiders on the eve of the season this year after a securing a release from the Newcastle Knights following a contract stand-off.
He says joining the Green Machine was the best decision for his career and new Kiwi coach David Kidwell has put faith in Tapine to rise to a new level in the Test arena.
"Even if I didn't get picked [in the New Zealand team] moving to Canberra would have been the right thing anyway," Tapine said.
"My lifestyle has improved as well as my game. Just off-field stuff has improved, I've worked hard on my diet and that's transferring into my game."
Tapine played 25 games for the Raiders after making his Canberra debut against his former club, the Knights, in round three.
He played every game from his debut until the Raiders' heartbreaking preliminary final defeat two weeks ago.
The 22-year-old cemented his place in the Raiders' front-row rotation and made an impact every time he went on the field, finishing the season with an average metres gained of 198 per game.
But the biggest change came when former junior Kiwi turned any lingering puppy fat into muscle by cutting down on his chocolate treats.
"My missus helped me a lot with that," Tapine grinned.
"Kept the biscuits away from me and the Caramello Koalas as well ... I cut out a few sweets that I love to eat. I still have them and it's nothing dramatic, but cutting down a little bit has really helped me."
The Wellington-born versatile forward could be lining up against Raiders teammates Josh Papalii and Shannon Boyd in a battle of the big men in the first Test in Perth on October 15.
Rapana is also in contention for his first Test cap after a stunning year for Canberra, beating the club's single-season try-scoring record to jump ahead of the mark set by Brett Mullins, Noa Nadruku and Jason Croker.
Tapine and Rapana (New Zealand), Boyd and Papalii (Australia), Elliott Whitehead and Josh Hodgson (England) and Junior Paulo (Samoa) form one of the biggest Raiders representative contingents in recent years.
It's a massive turnaround from seasons of the past when Green Machine players were shunned from the representative arena.
But their friendly fire at training and best NRl season in 21 years has put them back on the radar and among the best players in the world.
"If you want to be the best player you can, you've got to step up and take on those big players," Tapine said.
"[Playing rep footy] will help you when you come back to NRL and you've got to take what you can, for me that will be a bit of confidence in stepping up in that environment."
