Ali Lautiiti made his National Rugby League debut way back in 1998 at North Sydney Oval against the Bears. Not many players can say they faced the Bears let alone have run out for a match at the grand old venue.

To put his return to the New Zealand Warriors in perspective, superstar fullback Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was only five years old when Lauitiiti took on Gary Larson, Jason Taylor and Greg Florimo for the first time.

Long before Sonny Bill Williams there was Lautiiti who Kiwi legend Mark Graham once dubbed, “the next Michael Jordan of rugby league.”

The saddest part however is the NRL never saw Lautiiti at his best. By the time the Warriors had made the 2002 grand final, the hulking forward with the twinkle toe feet was a household name but still had improvement in him. Only twelve months later the Auckland-native signed a deal with Leeds Rhinos in the Super League and hasn’t been seen in the NRL since. While he was a superstar at the Warriors, right up there with Stacey Jones, he still hadn’t reached his full potential and left without as much as a goodbye after a falling out with Warriors boss Mick Watson. Now he’s back at the Warriors and at 36-years-old, will be the oldest player in the competition if and when he is picked in Andrew McFadden’s team.

All it took was a text message to fellow great Rueben Wiki.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WK0JqlNz6Q

“I asked if the club needed any old players, any old heads,” he said.

“Ruben wrote back and said ‘Are you serious?’ I confirmed I was.”

Who says rugby league is a young man’s game?

Only last week one of Parramatta’s favourite sons Nathan Hindmarsh announced he was considering a comeback with his beloved Eels.

“This decision is something you can’t take lightly,” Hindmarsh said on Triple M.

“To go back playing after four years – it’s going to be a massive decision.”

The 330-game veteran conceded that the reduction in interchanges would only help him if he was to don the blue and gold once more.

Unfortunately for Lautiiti, he would still be the oldest player in the game if Hindmarsh returned.

1998 must feel like a lifetime ago. Perhaps because it was. In ’98 Parramatta coach Brad Arthur was just 23 and playing for the Batemans Bay Tigers while the Warriors’ McFadden was the next great halfback in waiting at the Raiders behind Ricky Stuart.

And then there’s 35-year-old Newcastle lock Jeremy Smith or ‘Uncle Jeremy’ to his teammates.

While Hindmarsh and Lautiiti have played in grand finals – Smith can say he’s appeared in four deciders.
He’s won some, lost some and had others taken away after the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal of 2010. A late bloomer, Smith didn’t debut until 2004 – long after Lautiiti’s exit to the Super League.

The Kiwi lock, known for his signature look of socks down around the ankles, says he won’t overstay his welcome at the Hunter club.

“There’s too many good young kids coming through and I wouldn’t want to hold them up a spot just to keep me on for one more year,” Smith told NRL.com.

“We’ll just have to see how it plays out.

“Coaching-wise I wouldn’t mind helping out somewhere along the line especially with the good young kids we have coming through.

“I’ve loved Newcastle since arriving here four years ago and I can’t see myself leaving here any time soon. It’s my home now.”

Smith said the young Knights squad was keeping him fresh ahead of yet another NRL campaign.

“My age doesn’t bother me. I’m fairly fit and feeling as young as I can. Hanging around the younger boys, they’re really enthusiastic, so it gets you up and going when times are tough.”

Not to be forgotten either is Gold Coast hooker Nathan Friend who at 35 has seen the rise and fall of the Titans club. As a founding member of the 2007 team, Friend went on to become a cornerstone of both the Titans and Warriors packs. Only last year Friend made highlight reels across the world when his midair, front flip, flick pass, try assist went viral.

What about Cronulla’s inspirational skipper Paul Gallen who not only wants to claim the Sharks their first premiership but not the block of Sonny Bill at some point too?

Guess rugby league isn’t a young man’s game after all.

You can buy talent but there is nothing like experience.

That’s why the only numbers that matter are the ones on the scoreboard after eighty minutes of footy.

@woodward_curtis

Video source: Everything Rugby League