Berdie gave it his best shot
Just two games at the top but Selasi a cult hero on the Tweed
SELASI Berdie may have played just two games for the Titans but he remains a favourite among longtime league fans in the area.
A cult hero at Tweed, where he played more than 100 Queensland Cup games and played for the Seagulls as well as representing the Queensland residents, Berdie was the first player of Ghanaian descent to play in the NRL.
After making his debut in the final round of the 2008 season, Berdie gained a second game late in 2009 but was unable to make himself a permanent NRL fixture with the club boasting secondrowers like Anthony Laffranchi, Ashley Harrison, Mark Minichiello and Luke O’Dwyer.
He has no regrets though, saying he was fortunate to play even one game and line up alongside some of the game’s greats like Preston Campbell.
“To be honest, I was lucky to get a game with the Titans,” the 32-year-old said.
“The year that I was there was definitely a time where the team was at its strongest and I was a back-rower and they had probably the best back-rowers in Australia at the time in Laffranchi and Mini (Minichiello) and Chalky (O’Dwyer), so by no means did I have regrets at all. I gave it my best shot.”
Berdie may be light on games played but when it comes to smarts, he is at the top of the class, possessing a degree in exercise science and sports marketing and owning businesses including popular Mermaid Beach cafe BSKT with partners including another former Titan Greg Bird.
“I’ve got BSKT with some partners, so that takes up a fair bit of time and I also have a marketing agency in Burleigh,” he said.
“That’s a new venture and probably takes the majority of time at the moment.
“I was doing exercise science and marketing and I went into the nutrition pathway and from that I started working for BodyScience on the Gold Coast.”