Tyra Wetere knows how to find her way to the tryline. Photo: David Rowland/Photosport
Last month, when NZ Warriors lost the services of sevens superstar Michaela Brake, coach Ron Griffiths turned to an unlikely replacement.
NRLW rookie Tyra Wetere was signed to the squad primarily to develop as a halfback and had trained at fullback, but never in Brake's position.
"Ron asked me if I wanted to debut as a winger and I'm not a winger, so it was really new to me," she recalled. "I was too keen, and he told me to get out of the room and think about it.
"I came back and gave him a list of things I thought I could bring to the team - my attitude, for one. I said, from pre-season to now, I felt like I was fitter, stronger and faster, and I guess that's what made him change his mind."
Since a nervous debut against North Queensland Cowboys, when she fumbled away an early scoring chance, Wetere, 19, has hit her straps in her unfamiliar role, with try doubles in subsequent outings against Canterbury Bulldogs and Cronulla Sharks.
While former-Mt Maunganui College schoolmate and now-flatmate Payton Takimoana leads the competition with 11 tries on the other wing, Wetere has shown she also knows how to find the line.
"It's coming from the work from the insides and I'm just grateful to get the finishes," she insisted.
"Ron has given me the tools to believe in myself and train hard, and get the job done. He spoke to me about my goals for every game - to carry the ball as much as I can, more than 10 times - and I achieve those goals."
Initially, Wetere found the prospect of covering Brake's absence daunting, but she seems to gain in confidence with every game and every try.
"I was really nervous about that, but I was really happy with how I played," she admitted. [Brake] came back the other week to announce she was pregnant and she said her family were saying it looked like I had filled her shoes well.
"That meant a lot."
Warriors celebrate a try by Tyra Wetere against Canterbury Bulldogs. Photo: www.photosport.nz
Even without Brake, competition on the right wing is heating up. Lavinia Tauhalaliku was handed her Warriors debut against Canberra Raiders and scoring her first try, before leaving the field with concussion.
Kalyn Takitimu-Cook made her NRLW entrance with a 16-minute cameo against the Sharks, while Griffiths added new signing Paris Pickering to his squad this week.
Pickering, 20, was on the Warriors radar during the recruitment process, but ultimately crossed the Tasman to play for North Devils in the Queensland state league.
"I was close to signing her for this season, so we had connected before she moved to Australia to play, and I gave her some reasons why I didn't think she was right for us right then," Griffiths said. "We watched from afar and saw some improvements, we needed a player and thought it was a great fit for us.
"Paris is from Auckland, and has relationships with players and staff already. She's spent a fair bit of time with them through junior rep teams and things like that.
"If you look at all those players, they're young, they're eager and willing to learn. It's great to have that competition."
Griffiths needs every healthy body he can find right now. With the benefit of just one training session, Pickering was thrust into an extended squad to face St George Illawarra Dragons on Saturday, but the Warriors are still a player short of filling the team sheet, as three frontliners serve suspensions for tackle-related offences.
Ultimately, he still sees Wetere as a halfback, although she now fancies herself more at fullback.
"I think there was a great learning for her on the weekend," Griffiths observed. "The first high ball she took, she got picked up and taken over the touchline.
"The second time she was in that scenario, she caught the ball and fell to the ground. That said to me she was able to learn on the run in the game and just shows she's progressing.
"Further to that, we understand plays one, two and three from outside backs are plays we need to be really good at. She's really small, but she's tough and she's getting the body position right to get wins for us there.
"I think, long term, she's going to be a half. She's got the tenacity defensively, and once she grows her understanding of the game and how to manage a game, I think that's what she'll be, maybe starting at fullback and transitioning into the halves at some stage."
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
