Panthers winger Paul Alamoti hit the heights by winning a competition and representing Tonga in 2024, but he’s had to cop some frustrating lows in a “crazy rollercoaster” year in which he was dropped and then sensationally recalled for the finals.
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Alamoti was one of the stories of 2024 after the Bulldogs junior made the move out west and was rewarded with a premiership ring after starring on grand final night with a try against the Storm.
He earnt an international debut later that year and started the new season on fire with four tries in his first three matches, but things quickly changed as the Panthers endured a horror run of form and slipped to last after 12 rounds.
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An ugly loss in Bathurst was the final straw for coach Ivan Cleary, who dropped Alamoti to reserve grade, with the powerful outside back filling in five times in the NRL when Brian To’o was out or when Izack Tago was suspended.
“It was a conversation that no player wants to go through, but I guess I’ve been there before at the Dogs so it was nothing new to me,” Alamoti said when asked how it felt to be dropped.
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“I knew how to get myself back in the NRL squad simply by training hard, playing well week in, week out and letting my training come to life by stripping back with a few things and controlling what I can control.
“That’s what my mindset was the last two or three months to get to where I am today.”
The demotion to NSW Cup was the wake-up call he needed, with Alamoti scoring six tries in the five games he played back in the top grade, including a double in the final round against the Dragons.
Despite the strong form, he was expected to miss the trip to Auckland for the first week of the finals, only for Cleary to pull a shock switch by dropping winger Tom Jenkins, who had been one of the great comeback stories of the year.
Alamoti felt for Jenkins, who had done nothing wrong on the left wing, but he knew he had a point to prove after conceding he deserved to be dropped midway through the season.
“There was a lot of joy (when Ivan told me I was back in the team),” he said.
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“I honestly didn’t expect it because Milky (Jenkins) has been playing amazing footy since he first came in. Almost every game he’s pretty much been the best player on the ground.
“He was one of the first people who told me that I was playing, so I’ve got a lot of love for him. He’s had a stellar year and has pretty much been best on ground most games this year.
“When he (Ivan) told me, I didn’t want to let him down. I definitely felt at that time that I wasn’t playing to the standard that I know I can play to.
“I trust that coach makes the right decision. It was a blessing in disguise because I was able to go back and work on a few things to get things right mentally and physically.
“The pressure comes off and I was able to just be me to get myself back to where I am today.”
Alamoti will again start on the right wing against a Bulldogs side who handed him his debut in 2023 but sensationally let him join the Panthers a year later.
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The 21-year-old had been hyped as the next big thing at Belmore but said he would have been “silly” to not join the Panthers after Cleary got in touch.
“It’s always a bit weird coming up against the old club,” he said.
“It’s no different to any other week. It’s the finals, so it’s do or die, and we’re playing to win and so are they, so it’ll be no different to any other finals game.”
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