Selfless offer says it all

Tweed impressed by new captain’s dedication

A 22-year-old who has not even played a trial game in club colours might not seem like the ideal candidate to elevate into the captaincy.

Yet one conversation alone sums up exactly why Cheyne Whitelaw – who will lead Tweed Heads out for the first time today at lock against Burleigh, despite not being named – was the prime choice.

At the Seagulls’ season launch earlier this month, new chief executive Matt Jobson announced the club’s intentions to get involved with local charity programs and mentoring, though exact plans are still to be refined.

“The next week Cheyne came and saw me off his own bat and said, ‘I heard what you said at the launch – I’ve got some really big off-field goals myself, I’d love to get involved’,” Jobson said. “He wanted to donate some of his playing fee. He wanted any involvement he could possibly have.

“I said, ‘hold off on the donation of the playing fee; you don’t make enough money’, but what we are trying to do is have a mentoring program, a bit of a support outreach program – whatever shape that looks – and he said ‘mate, that’s fantastic’. “He is a fantastic kid … he has got leadership written all over him.”

Whitelaw joined Tweed in the off-season from Rabbitohs feeder club North Sydney.

“Footy is a massive, huge goal of mine but me moving up from Sydney wasn’t just about that – it was also about ticking a few other boxes,” he said.

“I wanted to contribute either my money or time towards charity this year.

“I’m also trying to encourage the boys to get around the community and build a community in Tweed, which apparently they have lost a little bit in the last couple of years.”

Whitelaw missed the first two rounds of the Intrust Super Cup season after dislocating his left wrist in Gold Coast’s NRL trial against Brisbane last month.