Playing an NRL game was always the childhood dream for a fresh-faced Bronson Garlick and now at 28-years old and 22 games into his NRL career, building off a breakout year is the next non-negotiable on Garlick's hitlist.
Having arrived for Day 1 of the 2024 pre-season sporting some new ink, a lightning bolt on his right arm, the South Eastern Seagulls junior returns after enjoying a 2023 season that saw him receive Melbourne Storm’s Most Improved award.
On the eve of the 2024 season, Garlick is determined build off last year’s learnings and reach new heights, well aware that there are no guarantees in the world of rugby league.
A late bloomer to the NRL scene, debuting at the age of 27, Garlick operates with a constant attitude of gratitude, knowing the life of an NRL player is not always just bright lights and big stages but one of hard work, setbacks and perseverance.
“I'm just really grateful to be at the Storm, looking back probably 4-5 years ago, I never in a million years thought I'd be here playing first grade,” Garlick said.
“Playing NRL is all I’ve wanted to do, I look back to the days where I wasn’t playing NRL...those times of getting knocked back over and over but then coming up again,”
“To be in this position now, I’m just so grateful.”
His career in limbo at the conclusion of his development contract in 2022, a call from Storm’s Football General Manager Frank Ponissi changed the course of Garlick’s rugby league career, with his time in Melbourne far from over.
Upgraded to Storm’s Top-30 squad ahead of the 2023 season, this was a window of opportunity Garlick wasn’t going to take for granted.
“I think last year was just a combination of everything I've done in my life leading up to the point where I made my debut, it’s all I wanted to achieve,” Garlick said.
“Everyone says there's a lot of luck that goes into it but I feel like I put myself in a position to get lucky, I worked really hard in those years during COVID where the comp was on and off,”
“I think the biggest thing for me was that I just never ever gave up on my dream."
A self-diagnosed footy fanatic, Garlick's passion for rugby league meant he wasn’t just satisfied with playing one NRL game, he now wanted more.
“I played that game against the Eels and it was the best day of my life but then I was hungry for more and wanted to stay in the team for the rest of the year,” he said.
“As soon as I debuted then the next goal was OK, now I want to stay in the team,”
“It’s funny because all I said in my head leading into the season was get that one game but it only took that one game for me to get that bug of wanting to be there every week.”
With the challenge of the upcoming season now fast approaching, Garlick knows the hard work is only just getting started.
“Coming back this preseason I had a lot to prove, having played those games last year I feel like the environment we have at Storm, there’s not an opportunity to rest on your laurels,” he said.
“You're always constantly competing to be the best version of yourself and I want to be the best player I can be,”
“I think the most important thing for me is knowing my role and executing, if I can do that, then I feel like I'll go a long way into achieving what I want to achieve.”
