Gold Coast halfback Tanah Boyd is comfortable in his own skin and in his role, so he can laugh about being tagged “the next Alfie” while coming through the Brisbane system.
He will play against his former club on Saturday night at Robina with a determination to shine in the No.7 jersey that he was always destined to wear since his days with Keebra Park High.
At the end of 2018 Boyd was elevated into the Broncos’ NRL squad after representing Queensland under 18s two years running, and impressing while playing for Souths-Logan.
It was then he became the talk of the Brisbane media. There will only ever be one Allan ‘Alfie’ Langer and Boyd said he had perspective about the hype.
“I remember that well but it was always going to be there. I was a Broncos junior … with blond hair and small,” Boyd grinned while speaking to AAP.
“Alf was also there at the Broncos but I never read anything into that stuff and found it pretty funny. We joked about it. Me and Alf had a laugh too. It was all good.
“What I loved about Alf was that he kept you relaxed and he was great around the group. He wasn’t so involved with me and my game when I was there but he was always good to be around.”
In 2019 Boyd signed mid-season with the Titans. After improving his game he finally was given the No.7 jersey at the end of last season. Since then, Gold Coast have won six of 10 games where Boyd has been in control.
“I love it. The reason you play in this position is you want the expectation. You want to perform and keep getting wins for the team,” he said.
“It has been a blessing in disguise. I am back home (on the Gold Coast) with family and I love this club. They gave me my opportunity in the NRL, backed me and developed me into the player I am.
“The reason I came here to the Titans was the opportunity to play half. It took a while. I had to play a bit of hooker and learn my craft more.”
His gratitude to Brisbane, though, remains.
“There are so many good people at the Broncos,” he said.
“They brought me through and developed me as a player and did so much for me. I have some great mates there. I played a lot with Cory Paix, Kobe Hetherington … so many of them I went through juniors with.
“I love coming up against the Broncs. It’s a big challenge for us.”
© AAP 2023
