McQueen vows to give back to Maguire

CHRIS McQueen reached out to Michael Maguire long before the pair would be reunited at Wests Tigers, urging his former South Sydney coach to sign him wherever Maguire ended up.

McQueen was told to look elsewhere by then Tigers coach Ivan Cleary after a poor debut season. As chance would have it McQueen would not have to follow Maguire anywhere, with the NRL premiership-winning coach joining him at the Tigers.

“I spoke to Madge when I knew the door was open for me to move on,” McQueen said.

“He wasn’t sure what he was doing but I said ‘If you end up at a club give me a call because I’ll be looking for a club’.

“I said to him when he came ‘I know I had a tough year but I’m here and I’m ready to rip in. I know what it takes and what you bring to the club’. “He said ‘That’s all I want’.” McQueen had a disastrous first season at the Tigers.

He was Jason Taylor’s final recruit as Tigers coach and joined the club off the back of a serious neck operation from the Gold Coast.

McQueen played just three top-grade games last year.

“After the surgery I thought ‘I’ve done this before, I know what I’m doing’,” McQueen said. “It wasn’t the case. I lost so much in terms of fitness and strength in that time off.’’

Cleary told the six-time Origin player that he was free to leave just months into a three-year deal.

“It rattles you,” McQueen said. “I wasn’t playing good footy so I wasn’t getting an opportunity to play NRL and that was fair. I was frustrated.”

McQueen returned to the top grade last round, starting in the 30-14 win over the Titans.

He was overcome with emotion when Maguire told him he would start his second game since June 16, 2017.

The backrower has held his spot for tonight’s clash with hosts the Roosters at the SCG.