Finding his feet at a new NRL club while his young family remained in New Zealand was far from easy for Gold Coast's Erin Clark.
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Having debuted for the Warriors in 2017, Clark's rugby league career had stalled by the time he arrived in Queensland for a train-and-trial opportunity with the Titans in late 2019.
That one game for the Warriors was still his only NRL appearance when he earned himself a full contract with the Titans in January 2020.
Since then the 24-year-old has become a first grade regular, notching his 50th appearance in last weekend's loss to Melbourne.
Despite the on-field achievements, Clark was however capitalising on his second chance on his own in Australia with partner Elizabeth and children Joel and Alya-Elise in Auckland due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The family was re-united earlier this year following the re-opening of international borders and look set for a long stay in southeast Queensland after the Titans announced on Friday Clark had signed a two-year contract extension to keep him at the club until the end of the 2025 season.
"Everything I do is for them," Clark said of his family.
"Just to have them here, it makes life a bit easier.
"To be away from them for two years. It's definitely something that I didn't realise took a toll on me until they actually came back and my performance kind of dropped a bit too.
"To have them here, it's definitely helping me not just with footy but with life in general."
Clark begun the season thrust into an unfamiliar role at hooker, part of a gamble by the Titans on an inexperienced spine which hasn't worked this year in a campaign that has featured just three wins and the real possibility of a wooden spoon.
A recent switch to his preferred lock role has brought better form and Clark is confident brighter days lie ahead for the Titans with the impending arrivals of Sam Verrills and Kieran Foran in 2023.
Adding to the sense Clark has found an NRL home at the Titans, his mother Temepara Bailey - a former New Zealand netball international - is also the coach of the club's Queensland state league netball team.
"That was definitely something I took into consideration when I re-signed here," he said.
"The way they looked after me and my family ... to have that support around the club for my family and to show that they care, in that sense, is definitely something that caught my eye.
"I want to be a Titan for life."
Australian Associated Press
