Emma Pritchard

Brilliant Wests Tigers fullback Daine Laurie was recently announced as the co-recipient of the Kelly-Barnes Medal as the club’s 2021 NRL Player of the Year, sharing the honour with halfback Luke Brooks.

Following a standout debut season with the joint venture club, which saw the former Grafton Ghosts and Lower Clarence Magpies prodigy score seven tries with a running average of 134m per game, Laurie has asserted himself as one of the most talented and exciting players in the NRL.

Laurie played 19 games for the Wests Tigers and was touted as a contender for the 2021 Dally M Rookie of the Year before he cruelly suffered a horrific season-ending lower leg injury during his club’s Round 20 clash against the New Zealand Warriors at Suncorp Stadium.

Despite finishing the 2021 season on the sidelines, the 22-year-old excelled in the number one jersey, and was a shining light for his NRL club, providing fans with many celebratory moments during another disappointing year where the team once again struggled for consistency.

Laurie is contracted to the Wests Tigers until the end of the 2023 NRL season.