Jack from the brink: Wighton reflects on being given 'second chance'

"You must be pinching yourself," Ennis said to Wighton, as silence fell across the room. "What a 12 months it has been. To think where you were this time last year.

"The transition from fullback to five-eighth, you go on to play in a winning Origin series, you're now one game away from playing in a grand final. And Mal Meninga comes out and says he's looking to pick you in the Australian side."

Wighton smiled and told Ennis there had been highs and lows.

That would be an understatement.

You have to wonder what on earth was going through Wighton's mind this time last year.

The Raiders missed the top eight and Wighton was stood down by the NRL for 10 matches after CCTV footage surfaced of him stumbling outside a Canberra nightclub and then assaulting passers-by.

Wighton, a father of two young children, was due in court in November having pleaded guilty to a drunken assault and would have been genuinely concerned about spending time behind bars.

The question of just what he was thinking at the end of the 2018 season will get asked this week as interest in Wighton and the Green Machine kicks into overdrive ahead of the blockbuster preliminary final against South Sydney on Friday night.

We thought we'd get in early.

"This time last year I was probably heading down towards Mildura for a week-long camping trip, just to get away from everyone," Wighton tells The Sun-Herald. "I'll get down there with a few mates.

"As for this year, it's been the best. One of my main goals from last year was to repay my teammates. Apart from my family, I let my teammates down the most.

"To now have this journey, this year has been amazing.

"I made the Origin side, we won the series, now I'm 80 minutes away from the big dance.

"Honestly, in a weird way, it's been a blessing in disguise [what happened last year]. I've found a love again for the game I thought I was losing for a while. You don't realise that until something major happens.

"Every year you get older and it slips away quicker and quicker, and she could have been all done last year. But I've got a second chance and I'm making the most of it now."

One person who was there the whole time, "not as a shoulder to cry on, but just as a continuing presence" was Canberra's long-serving chaplain, Father John Woods. Woods, who has been involved with the club since 1986, flew out for the Vatican on Saturday night and will miss next Friday's clash against Souths.

Coach Ricky Stuart asked Father Woods to address the playing group on Friday night as they gathered to watch the Souths-Manly semi-final.

Father Woods took it upon himself to write Wighton a reference last year, which was handed over during the hearing in Galambany Court, a specialised court for Aboriginal offenders within the ACT Magistrates Court.

"If I could change it, I definitely would," Wighton said at the time.

Father Woods tells The Sun-Herald: "Prior to that incident and since the incident, Jack has learnt a lot. He was remorseful and certainly deserved another chance.

"When you're young, you don't have the benefit of life experience, so you need support of the people around you.

"He came here pursuing a footy career; he has a young family, he has an opportunity. I think he's owned up [to his mistake], he's realised what he wants to do. He knows people believe in him and he's taking it from there.

"I think the Raiders have a record of certainly trying to be supportive, and they've shown they're willing to forego a player for the sake of what [values] they uphold.

"He's a good guy to be around, he's always smiling and what you see is what you get. Ricky Stuart has compared some of his footballing qualities to Laurie Daley. I knew Laurie when he was here and there are some similarities."

Stuart deserves special credit for Wighton's revival on the field after shifting him from fullback to five-eighth.

"I was more confident about the move than him," Stuart says.

Some Raiders fans will remember Wighton was only moved to fullback in the first place because James Tedesco backflipped on his deal to move to the capital and Anthony Milford wanted to join the Broncos.

Stuart knew the tough kid from Orange would thrive in the halves. The only thing he was more sure about was Wighton bouncing back from last year's scandal.

"That's all behind him now," Stuart says. "It was well documented what happened, but the past is best left in the past. We're really focusing on what we can achieve now and in the future.

"It was tough for Jack in the pre-season because there were four or five weeks where we had him training at fullback and five-eighth and we didn't know which way we were going to go. But once we made the decision he walked straight into it."

Wighton has a healthy respect for a Souths team that includes a few of his Origin mates.

"Souths are a solid team, they've got a great coach who will get them up for a big game, and we've got a challenge on our hands," Wighton says. "They've got strike all over the park. So do we. It will be a great game and we'll need to go in all guns blazing if we're going to try and pip them."

Souths hooker Damien Cook, who won the Origin series alongside Wighton, says: "I don't know how to describe him. He's so competitive and he's very similar to Cody [Walker]. He loves to get his hands on the ball and not afraid to run it. And there always seems to be points around him."

Josh Hodgson, the classy Raiders No.9, is Wighton's best mate - Wighton played a big role helping the Englishman overcome homesickness during his first year at the club - and he loves what he's seeing this season from Wighton.

"Every time I see him get a wide ball off me, he'll get that big left foot and a palm going and splits the line," Hodgson says. "He's such a big powerful kid. One of Sticky's biggest headaches is where to put Jack because he plays so well out the back on those sweep lines as a fullback, and he's as safe as houses at the back as well. Then you put him in the No.6 role and he flies there as well.

"They put him in the centres for the Blues and he was unbelievable for them and defended well on that edge. Jack is just an athlete and has that aggression you need on the edge. He'll never let you down. You know what you get with him.

"It's been a massive 12 months for him. It's really nice to see him getting the rewards for his hard work."

Meninga is more than prepared to pick Wighton in the centres for the Kangaroos Tests against New Zealand and hopefully Tonga in a few weeks. He points out Wighton and Latrell Mitchell are predominantly left-side players, but can make it work.

"It's been a breakout year for Jack," Meninga says. "He's very much so in the mix. He excelled at Origin level, he can play No.6, No.1, on the wing and probably play in the forwards. The utility value alone is exciting for the Australian set-up.

"And he's go his life in order. He's understanding who he is and excelling."

Jack would agree.