Tom Trbojevic goes public with huge State of Origin admission around NSW captain Jake

Sea Eagles star Tom Trbojevic has opened up on his dream to play in a NSW side under the captaincy of his older brother as he prepares to make his return from a hamstring injury this weekend. Trbojevic picked up the hamstring injury in the Sea Eagles' Round 10 loss to the Dolphins and will make his return in the centres this weekend for Manly's clash with the Cowboys on Saturday night.

Instead of his usual fullback position, Trbojevic has been named in the centres as they ease him back into the NRL and look to extend his longevity. His latest injury has not only seen him miss a sizeable chunk of the 2024 season but also denied him the opportunity to play in the first two matches of this year's State of Origin series, where his brother Jake captained the Blues for the first time.

While Trbojevic knows it is a long shot for him to be selected in the Origin decider, as he will only have one game to make his case before the Game 3 side is named, he hopes he can play under his brother's leadership at representative level in the future. "It was a proud moment watching Jake captain NSW," Trbojevic told NRL.com.

"Not many people get the opportunity to do that, he's very honoured by it. It would be pretty special to play with him as captain. He's captained me before at Manly, which has been really cool. I'm happy he gets the opportunity and recognition to captain NSW. Hopefully, he can lead them to a Game 3 victory and a series victory."

Tom Trbojevic says Jake is a true leader

Jake was considered by many as a shock skipper call from new coach Michael Maguire and he has had limited impact for the Blues in both Games 1 and 2 largely as a result of playing limited minutes. Maguire decided to hand the Manly lock the armband after dropping last year's captain and NSW regular James Tedesco from the side but many pundits have continued to question if he is the right man to lead the Blues.

But his passion for Origin and his good standing among his peers have made him a popular choice internally, despite the external criticism from former Origin players including Mark Geyer and Darryl Brohman. And Tom says while many were surprised he was given the armband, he wasn't at all, stating his brother has always been a leader.

As the oldest of four boys, Jake has been the solid rock in the family as he went on to see his younger brothers make their NRL debuts and he has also led Manly around the park on multiple occasions. "Jake leads from the front," Trbojevic said.

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"Jake leads from the front," Trbojevic said. "He's the oldest so it makes sense he's the leader in the family. Playing with him when I came into first grade was awesome.

"I took it a bit for granted because we had played in a lot of teams together growing up, but then with Ben coming in, you realise how special it is. It's been really good to see Ben making a name for himself. It's pretty surreal we all get to train together and play together."