From getting the news from Wests Tigers coach Michael Maguire to celebrating victory with family and friends, Jock Madden's debut week has been littered with moments the young halfback will never forget.
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The word that kept coming to mind for Madden as he recounted the memorable week was: "special".
With 13 minutes on the clock, just after Jayden Brailey had scored for the Knights, Madden stepped into an NRL game for the first time.
The lengthy wait to be introduced to the game didn't amplify his nerves. He just had "a really good feeling to be amongst it all".
"I was just so excited," Madden, who started in the Newcastle Knights junior system before joining Wests Tigers in 2019, said.
"The Knights had scored at that point in time and when I went on all the boys were really happy to see me out there.
"Moses Mbye and Adam Doueihi came up, hugged me and said 'welcome to first grade, buddy'. That moment will sit with me forever."
Madden said it was the "best feeling ever" running on to the field at Suncorp Stadium during Magic Round.
To get the win - Tigers won 36-18 - with his teammates and in front of family and friends just took things to another level for the 21-year-old.
About 14 of Madden's mates made the trip to Brisbane along with aunties, uncles, cousins, his sisters - Ella and Gabie - and his mum and dad - Judy and David.
"My family got to come in the sheds which was very special," Madden said.
"I'm very thankful for the club to give me and my family that opportunity to spend it together.
"I got to catch up with all my mates that made the trip up on Friday morning - some flew, some drove. For them to come up that far shows how special my mates are."
While Madden only got a small taste of playing first grade NRL football, it has made him hungry for more.
Ben Jaffrey
Ben is a content curator and journalist for The Land. He has been with ACM since 2015 and first worked at The Area News and then at the Northern Daily Leader. Ben first joined ACM Agri as a digital journalist for all seven agricultural mastheads in 2022 before shifting to The Land full-time in 2023.
Ben is a content curator and journalist for The Land. He has been with ACM since 2015 and first worked at The Area News and then at the Northern Daily Leader. Ben first joined ACM Agri as a digital journalist for all seven agricultural mastheads in 2022 before shifting to The Land full-time in 2023.
