Warning to NRL centres: With some help from the football gods, Brent Tate's best is yet to come.
The 28-year-old premiership winning centre has only played 40 minutes in the last 12 months.
A pre-season calf-strain and a second knee reconstruction, suffered in round three of '09 against his former Brisbane Bronco team-mates, reduced him to a frustrating spectator role.
But thankfully for the Warriors - who sorely missed his experience, dummy-half dabs, and prolific finishing ability - he's back, fitter and stronger than ever.
"I've had a stop-start couple of years and I haven't been able to show the best of what I've got," the 141-game veteran said.
"It's frustrating because I haven't built any consistency, but I'm confident my best footy is ahead of me. Other people have different opinions, but I know it's true."
Tate's confidence will be welcome news for the Australian sectors, as his try-scoring knack has seen him collect 12 four-pointers in 19 Kangaroo appearances.
"I'm confident my speed is back to where I was before the operation and I definitely feel stronger," Tate said.
"I can't control what happens to my knees. It's in the hands of the football gods."
He won't be tentative, but admits praying for a full season on the park.
"I'm excited to test myself against the best players. That starts on Sunday against the Gold Coast because we're not going to get a tougher team first-up."
The Titans finished thrid last year.
Tate will line up on the right side against 19-year-old Kiwi Joseph Tomane, who he describes as 'big strong and a really good finisher'.
As Steve Prices' brother in law Tate – married to Price's sister Jo - knows more than most how disappointed he was to lose the captaincy and how it was a 'surprise to everyone, Mannering included'.
Initially Price was disappointed, but it was not an issue now. But if the Warriors were to perform this year Price would need to be on the paddock, Tate said.
"Simon is our captain and we're all bloody stocked for him. It's not about one man. It's about the whole team chipping in and he will grow into the role."
"Simon has our respect. He is going to be a great leader. The boys will follow him into battle. We're all looking forward to see what he's got to offer as a skipper."
Mannering will not have the weight of expectation Price had to deal with last year as the Warriors are running close to shotgun as the competition's wooden spooners.
Tate said every time the Warriors had predicted a semi-finals appearance, or looked even further ahead, it hadn't worked for them.
This year, they would be a more enterprising side. The forwards had worked hard on ball movement as a one-dimensional attack last year situated around Stacey Jones bombing to Manu Vatuvei.
"You will see our forwards throwing the ball around and hopefully that will tire Gold Coast and give us outside backs a more opportunities with space out-wide," he said.
Warriors fans will be also be also praying to the football gods, both for Tate, and for a jump from 14th on the ladder.