'It was a test for me': The Blues challenge that gave King self-belief
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“Just because you are selected in Origin doesn't make you an Origin player. It’s what you do with that selection that defines whether you're an Origin player or not”.
Those words from Blues coach Laurie Daley before last month’s series opener at Suncorp Stadium inspired rookie prop Max King to prove to himself that he was no longer “just a pub footballer”.
King, 28, was the only debutant in a Blues team for which previous Origin experience was a highly desired attribute, particularly in the hostile environment of Suncorp Stadium.
After playing 40 minutes in NSW’s 18-6 win, King will shift from the interchange to start in place of injured prop Mitch Barnett in Wednesday night's Origin II at Perth's Optus Stadium.
“What Laurie said was a big thing, and I think it was a test for me,” King said.
It was to prove to a lot of people, but it was mainly to prove to myself, that I am an Origin player and I do belong here.
“It’s a big thing to get recalled, but to get recalled and promoted is even better, although it's obviously not under great circumstances with Mitch Barnett getting injured.
“It’s a baptism by fire, I guess, going straight into the belly of the beast kind of thing, so I’m looking forward to it.”
King ran 106 metres with ball and made 21 tackles without miss, while also producing a clean sheet for errors.
“To be honest that’s all I was thinking - just don't drop the ball and run hard,” said King, who is a devout Christian.
“I am obviously close with my faith, and I felt like God had pulled so many strings to get me there so I just sort of knew that he wouldn't take me to this platform and leave me to have a shocker by dropping the ball six times and missing 10 tackles.”
Asked if he thought at the start of the season that he’d be playing alongside Payne Haas in the front row of a NSW team aiming to win the Origin series in Perth, King said: “You could have told me six weeks ago and I wouldn’t have believed it”.
“If there's one thing that I probably lacked throughout my career it is confidence and never believing that I am that guy,” King said.
“I think the biggest thing for me coming into camp is just the gratitude of being here, because for the first one I remember going back to my room every day and I was like, ‘I can't believe I'm here’.
I’d look at my training gear and I’d be like, ‘I can’t believe I’m here’.
"I don't want to lose that, I don't want this to be normal, every game I want to be able to reflect and think, ‘man, like how cool is it’.”
Yet King is aware of his higher standing in the game after proving himself on the Origin stage.
Returning to the Bulldogs for last Monday's clash against the Eels before 60,000 fans at Accor Stadium, he felt like a leader.
“Coming back to clubland, I think that having that confidence of 'I do belong here' elevates you and I guess you want to lead more back there," King said.
“At the end of the day it's still footy and it's a sport that I've played since I was born, kind of thing, so it wasn't anything out of the box.
"Obviously, the intensity, goes up and another thing was the media. It can be scary if you feel the weight of the platform that you're on. I think that sort of helped with my confidence."
Despite his humility, King is a fourth-generation premiership player, with his father David, grandfather Johnny and great grandfather Cec all having played.
Johnny King is a Hall of Famer and one of the greatest wingers to have played the game, winning seven consecutive premierships with the Dragons from 1960 to 1966.
“He was really proud," King said. "I called my family in the sheds, and they just said that they love me and are proud of me. It's not just my journey, it's my family's journey, and my Pop was extremely proud."
Born in Huddersfield after his English mother Caroline met his father David while he was playing for the Giants, King had put his hand up to play for England but he now has his sights set on a Kangaroos jersey in the end-of-season Ashes series.
"During the World Cup a couple of years ago [2022] I thought I might have been a chance, and there's a lot of great players in England so I was never filthy about missing out," he said.
“But as a kid in Australia, I don't think anyone grows up without having that desire to play Origin and play for Australia, so I'm definitely glad about the way things have turned out. It couldn’t have worked out any better.
"I don't really want to think about it too much, there's obviously an Origin series and a whole lot of club footy but representing Australia would just cap off the year.
“I don't want to say it would be a dream come true because my dreams have already come true, but it would be another one to tick off, for sure."
Match: Maroons v Blues
Game 2 -
home Team
Maroons
away Team
Blues
Venue: Optus Stadium, Perth
