Gold Coast second-rower Beau Fermor missed last season with an anterior cruciate ligament rupture so when Billy Slater picked him in the extended Queensland squad last week it did wonders for his confidence and much more besides.
Maroons coach Slater's decision says a lot about his opinion of the 25-year-old after his second ACL tear. It's no surprise considering his 2022 heroics where he was the Titans' leading try-scorer with 11 in a rampaging display in an underperforming side.
What Slater's call has done for Fermor, and the Titans, is invaluable ahead of a campaign where new coach Des Hasler is aiming to take the club back to finals footy and beyond.
With star Maroons back-rower David Fifita racing the clock to recover from a pectoral tear to be fit for round one of the NRL, Fermor's return is key for Gold Coast to start the season on a winning note.
"I was really surprised when I got told by Billy I was going into Queensland camp on the weekend. After not playing footy for the whole of last year I didn't think I'd be there," Fermor told AAP.
"After missing a year, just being around that Queensland environment again made me feel really confident about the season ahead.
"Billy said to me in camp that just because I've missed a season doesn't mean I've forgotten how to play football.
"It makes you feel good and it makes you feel wanted. They are nice things to feel, so hopefully I can repay the faith Billy has put in me and I show him by the way I play for the Titans that I deserved to be in there."
The Dalby-raised Fermor, who has 46 NRL games under his belt, has long wanted to be a Maroon and follow in the footsteps of locals such as the late Carl Webb and Andrew McCullough.
His devastating line running and tackle-breaking ways could give Queensland an extra edge in their quest to win three consecutive State of Origin series.
That will only eventuate if Fermor gets it right in clubland. Two-time premiership winning coach Hasler, aiming to reverse the mediocrity that has plagued the Titans, has given Fermor a template for what is required to succeed in he NRL.
"I think Des is going to be massive for my game with the accountability he puts on us boys. He makes sure we do our roles properly, and if we are not then we are certainly told," Fermor said.
"Des is really big on the little effort areas. Everyone in the NRL can tackle and attack with the ball but it is those little effort areas that set the best teams like Penrith apart from the rest.
"That is what he has been drumming into us the whole pre-season ... and the will to win and competitiveness. We have been competing really hard at training and fighting to win opposed sessions. In the sport we play, at this level, it is a business of winning."
