League: Lolohea at the centre of things

Tuimoala Lolohea of the Warriors. Photo / Getty Images

When Tui Lolohea runs out at GIO Stadium in Canberra this evening, he'll be doing something he has never done before.

The talented 20-year-old, who was one of the best players for the Warriors last week, will play at centre - for the first time in his life.

No trial game. No Holden Cup match. No age-group experience. Not even a run in the three-quarters as a junior. He's never played in that part of the backline before but now he has to in an NRL game.

"I haven't played any centre ... none whatsoever," he confirmed. "When Cappy [Andrew McFadden] told me I was a bit like 'what?'. But I don't mind. It's another position that I can put under my belt."

Lolohea has already proved extremely versatile. Probably best suited to five-eighth, Lolohea also turned out at halfback and fullback for the Warriors under-20 team. He has enough pace to perform on the wing, and has even been touted as a possible stand-in hooker, with his ball skills and natural elusiveness. He's naturally quick with a dangerous sidestep but is also deceptively strong - he is 1.77m and 90kg.

But centre will be a challenge. Although league positions can seem quite homogeneous, they're not. Centre has nuances, particularly on defence, and requires rock-solid decision making. Tonight the rookie right-edge combination of Lolohea and Jonathan Wright will be up against Jarrod Croker and Sisa Waqa.

"It's a big ask for Tui," former Kiwis captain Richie Barnett said. "No one doubts his ability but it is a big call at an early stage of his career. I was a bit surprised. I thought Ben Henry might have been preferred there."

Lolohea, who still lives at home with his father, is realistic about the challenge but remains positive.

"Cappy is confident in me and knows what I can do. He knows I am pretty capable of reading the game," he said. "But that is all talk. In a game it can be different under fatigue, so I just have to go out and do it. I need to communicate well with my edge and hopefully we do well."

Lolohea is naturally gifted. He tries things others wouldn't contemplate, and last week at training he had his teammates applauding after one particular pick-up off his laces at full pace.

Last week wasn't his NRL debut (he made three appearances last season) but it felt like the start of something. He was outstanding from the back, running for more than 200m, making 10 tackle busts and barely putting a foot wrong.

"I felt quite comfortable out there," said Lolohea. "It was the first time I got to play alongside Shaun [Johnson] in a main game. I was pretty excited and I'm happy to get another shot this week."