Manly Sea Eagles star Tom Trbojevic has responded to suggestions he should make the permanent switch to centre following his uphill battle against injuries throughout his career.
'Turbo' has had nine hamstring injuries since 2019, four on the left, five on the right and a proposal for him to play in a different position has often floated around to reduce workload and keep him moving less on the field.
NRL legend Paul Gallen publicly called for coach Kieran Foran to take the decision out of Trbojevic's hands last week after he bore another setback against the Gold Coast Titans in Round 20.
His latest injury escalated fears that retirement is looming if Trbojevic continues to miss games for Manly.
The 2021 Dally M Medallist appeared on Nine's 100% Footy on Monday, where the topic of his current injury predicament emerged.
"Is there any chance you'd possibly move to the centres, at all? Just for your running load, obviously had a number of issues for a long, long time. Obviously we don't like seeing you out of the game; is it ever an option to change positions, is it something you may have to look at in the future?" Gallen asked Trbojevic on the panel.
"I did hear what you said (referring to calls in last week's episode of a position change), and a lot of people say it," Trbojevic responded.
"For me, I'm just doing what the team wants me to do. Whatever 'Foz' wants me to do, I'm happy to do.
"If he still wants me to play fullback, I still feel like I can go out there and influence a game of footy, and when I'm back playing, I'm not thinking about getting injured, I'm just thinking of going out and playing footy.
"Whatever Foz, Manly and the club want me to do, I'm happy to do. So yeah, look, if that is move to centre, it's move to centre.
"For now, he wants me to play fullback, and I'm really happy to just get my body right and go after it."
On his day, the 29-year-old Mona Vale junior is one of the finest talents in the NRL, but injuries haven't allowed him to build on playing consistently throughout the seasons gone by.
The positional switch to centres stems from his incredible stints at state representative level for the NSW Blues, where he featured prominently under Brad Fittler's coaching reign when Trbojevic was fit and firing.
During the 2021 State of Origin series, Fittler selected Trbojevic at right centre, but he often popped up on both sides of the field in attacking red zones and caused havoc for the Maroons.
He won the Wally Lewis Medal (series MVP), following a hat trick of tries in Game 1 and one extra in a 26-0 Suncorp victory in Game 2, forming a lethal centre combination with Latrell Mitchell.
Widely regarded as one of the most one-sided NSW Blues series wins ever, the state has yet to see Trbojevic and Mitchell feature together since then.
He is expected to return for the Sea Eagles in Round 23 after the club's bye.
