Bench forwards are often looked to for a spark but fiery redhead Corey Horsburgh has to learn to harness the hate if he is to become a force for the Canberra Raiders.
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The 21-year-old forward has retained his spot in the Raiders side to take on the Newcastle Knights at Canberra Stadium on Friday night.
But before the Queenslander can get his hands on the likes of David Klemmer, he needs to remind himself to do one thing: calm down.
Raiders coach Ricky Stuart has already pulled Horsburgh aside in a bid to help the youngster rein in the aggression which can sometimes counter exactly what he is trying to do.
"Still controlling my anger [is something I need to work on], it gets to me sometimes," Horsburgh said.
"I’m getting better at it. I’ve been better at it this year, but it gets the better of me sometimes. I just get a bit passionate, I want to get the team up and sometimes it doesn’t go that way.
"It gives me confidence [that I held my spot]. I wasn’t really happy with my performance on the weekend but hopefully this weekend I can have a good performance and hold my spot.
"It’s the little things [I need to improve on], no penalties - I gave away a couple of penalties on the weekend - so cut them out of my game.
"I’m looking forward to it, big Klemmer in the middle so it should be another good competition."
Raiders veteran Sia Soliola has all the time in the world for Horsburgh having seen first-hand the work he has put in - "not only physically, but mentally and emotionally as well".
Soliola remembers clearly the feeling he had when he was a youngster learning the ropes and trying to grow as a footballer and a person at the same time, admitting "it's a lot to take on".
But he is rapt with the commitment to the cause shown by Canberra's answer to Paul Vautin, as is coach Stuart over the opening two rounds.
Stuart believes as soon as he learns to curb his anger, Horsburgh will be able to blossom on the park.
"I’ve had a good chat to Corey in regards to a situation that occurred on the weekend and I’m hoping we won’t see that again," Stuart said.
"He’s only learning though, and Corey is a really good young bloke. He has a really healthy career in front of him, it’s just the way he starts. It’s important to really build a base, and this is his second pre-season of work.
"Once you get three or four good pre-seasons under your belt, you completely change physically. The best way to get that experience on game day is playing first grade, and that’s what he has had over the first couple of weeks.
"He’s got people knocking on his door as well… as a few players have, and that’s really healthy."
NRL ROUND THREE
Friday: Canberra Raiders v Newcastle Knights at Canberra Stadium, 6pm. Tickets from Ticketek.
Raiders squad: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 2. Nick Cotric, 3. Jarrod Croker (C), 4. Joey Leilua, 5. Jordan Rapana, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. Aidan Sezer, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Josh Hodgson (C), 10. Dunamis Lui, 11. John Bateman, 12. Elliott Whitehead, 13. Ryan Sutton. Interchange: 14. Siliva Havili, 15. Hudson Young, 16. Sia Soliola, 17. Corey Horsburgh. Reserves: 18. Sam Williams, 19. JJ Collins, 20. Bailey Simonsson, 21. Jack Murchie.
Knights squad: 1. Connor Watson, 2. Edrick Lee, 3. Hymel Hunt, 4. Jesse Ramien, 5. Shaun Kenny-Dowall, 6. Kalyn Ponga, 7. Mitchell Pearce (C), 8. David Klemmer, 9. Danny Levi, 10. James Gavet, 11. Lachlan Fitzgibbon, 12. Sione Mata'utia, 13. Tim Glasby. Interchange: 14. Kurt Mann, 15. Aidan Guerra, 16. Mitchell Barnett, 17. Herman Ese'ese. Reserves: 18. Josh King, 19. Mason Lino, 20. Jamie Buhrer, 21. Brodie Jones.
