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Unfazed Mitchell ahead of his time

Andrew Stevenson | June 25, 2008

IN HIS already over-stuffed trophy cabinet, Mitchell Pearce has the sort of memento every kid with the sniff of a rugby league dream would covet: a pair of Joey's shorts.

Pearce, named to make his debut in next Wednesday's Origin decider, is new to the sport's elite level. But not as new as all. His father, Wayne, had retired from representative football before Mitchell was born, but the game was never far from him as a youngster, and, when his father returned as NSW Origin coach in 1999, the son was the irrepressible 10-year-old in the corner of the dressing room.

He had enough of a sparkle in his eye to claim Andrew Johns's shorts, and the sparkle has not dimmed as his career has, inexorably, progressed with Mitchell always reaching the next landmark before his time seemed due.

Going into the melting pot of an Origin decider at 19 in the key position of halfback is only the most daunting of the chances he's been given. A full house at ANZ Stadium, with the series on the line and the kid just smiles. If he's scared, he ain't shaking.

"It's got that many positives …

I think it's the best arena you could ever play at and to get this opportunity so young and in a deciding game, I'm that pumped I can't wait," Pearce said.

"I'm over the moon and just privileged and I'm getting a lot of confidence that the selectors and [NSW coach Craig] Bellamy have put faith in me to do the job. I look forward to repaying them. I always dreamt of playing first-grade footy and maybe one day Origin. But it's come around a lot quicker than I would have dreamt of. If you had told me I was going to be playing at 19 I probably would have shot myself."

A proud Pearce snr said: "As a coach I'd probably be looking to put him in there, as a parent I'd hoped they'd look to next year … But they've thrown him in there and I've no doubt he'll do the job."

Despite his apparent reticence, Pearce, who works as a motivator, is not short of confidence in his son. "He's got the skill and he's got the mental discipline and they're the key ingredients you need to be successful in any field, either a sport or a career," he said.

Arriving at his destination early is a constant theme for the Roosters halfback. He played Australian Schoolboys as a 16-year-old, made first grade at 17. That a chance like this would come along is almost to be expected. His coach in the Schoolboys team, Simon Huntley, says the side was undefeated in England and France in 2006 in large part due to Pearce's efforts.

"He was ahead of himself then," Huntley said. "I've found he has the capacity that, whatever the level of intensity of the game, when he's asked to step up he does it without a problem."

Good genetics obviously play a factor. Everyone sees a bit of "Junior" in him. He's got the great pedigree, says Arthur Beetson, while Bellamy sees a fair bit of dad in him: "He's tough and Wayne was one tough competitor and tough physically as well."

Huntley reckons "Mitchell would be the first one to say, 'I'm not Wayne Pearce, I'm different from Dad'. But I think the work ethic really, really shines through."

But breeding's not everything. Mitchell spent his childhood at the foot of champions, in a world where sporting excellence - and its obsessive pursuit - was commonplace.

"We're all given certain talents but what's put on the end of it is all to do with their environment," Huntley said. "I don't think it's any fluke there's a generation like Rhys Jack [son of Garry], Blocker Roach's son Daniel and Mitchell, who have got parents who are involved in the game."

Pearce agreed: "Probably sub-consciously it helped me heaps. I didn't know any different; that was just the way it was, being around footy. I've always aspired to being a footy player."

Pearce's club coach, Brad Fittler, knows intimately the challenges of being an Origin teenager. He said his protege had been picked for his toughness. "He just does his job. He swallows them up and tackles whatever is put in front of him," Fittler said. "It was a bit different for me. I was a centre so I was relying on other people to do a lot of the organising. That's what Mitchell will have to do - and I think he'll do it extremely well. Week in, week out, we get a lot of good results and we get a lot of them because of him."