UQ Bachelor of Physiotherapy (Honours) student Patrick Carrigan will co-captain the Brisbane Broncos in their season-opening NRL blockbuster against the North Queensland Cowboys on Friday night.
Carrigan and playmaker Brodie Croft were handed the captaincy duties after club skipper Alex Glenn was ruled out of the round-one clash because of a hamstring injury.
While he admitted the circumstances around his appointment were unfortunate, Carrigan said he was excited to lead the team he grew up supporting as a boy.
“The whole team would love to have Lexie [Alex] out there, but this is definitely an exciting opportunity for me at this stage in my career,” Carrigan said.
“At the end of the day, I still have to perform my role for the team – I just get to run onto the field first.”
It’s a remarkable show of faith in the 22-year-old, who has featured in only 19 NRL games – 17 of which he has started off the bench.
Yet Broncos coach Anthony Seibold said the captaincy was a great reward for Carrigan, who he sees as an emerging leader at the club.
"He has been a leader in his age group for many years and is a great leader around the current group,” Seibold said.
"We don't have too many older players in our squad. We only have three over 30 and a couple aren't playing this week.
"It doesn't matter how old you are – you can be a leader in any walk of life, and he has done a really good job in pre-season."
Carrigan impressed in his debut NRL season last year, and relished the opportunity to put his leadership skills to the test when he captained the Broncos against the Gold Coast Titans in a pre-season trial match in February.
“[The Titans] match was an awesome experience, and I really enjoyed having a larger voice among the playing group,” Carrigan said.
“There’s a lot of expectation that comes with captaining the Broncos and I always looked up to the likes of Darren Lockyer, Corey Parker, Sam Thaiday and Justin Hodges.
“Then there are leaders like [Melbourne Storm captain] Cam Smith, who are so consistent and calm under pressure. That’s what I want to be like as a leader – someone who everyone wants to play with.”
