Martin out to enjoy finding his happiness
Hook, line and sinker: Skipper of the Warriors’ fishing club relishing role
In time they might become known as the Warriors’ fishing club.
As often as their busy schedules allow, five-eighth Te Maire Martin takes a few of his teammates out into the Hauraki Gulf to try their luck, as an antidote to the pressures of the job.
Sometimes it’s a decent expedition, as they head out to Little Barrier Island, launching from Omaha and on other occasions it is close by, with a short hop to spots around Waiheke Island from Mission Bay.
“It keeps us busy and keeps us happy I guess,” Martin tells the Weekend Herald. “Everyone likes it. Someone had to bite the bullet and get a boat because everyone [else] is playing golf.”
At different times Martin, who will play his second NRL match of the season against Manly today (5pm), has been accompanied by Jazz Tevaga, Mitch Barnett and Dylan Walker in his new 2100 Stabicraft.
“The boys love it,” says Martin, who has recently become an ambassador for Woodbine Marine. “Even getting into some spear fishing, it’s been fun, a bit of swimming around. My truck is a bit old — so it takes ages to get where we want to go — and obviously we can’t do it all the time but when we can, enjoying it.
The 28-year-old, who is also a keen hunter, is in a good place. Despite the intensity and demands of the sport, he maintains a relaxed persona.
“I suppose you could say that,” Martin says with a laugh. “I’m taking everything in. I’m enjoying footy, but I am also enjoying outside of footy. So I’m just happy, if I have a bad day at training I keep myself happy off the field.”
The strategy is working, judging by Martin’s start to the season. After being passed over, in favour of Luke Metcalf for an NRL spot, he was a standout in NSW Cup, before making a rollicking return to first grade last Saturday, with an assured performance in the 34-4 win over Souths.
It wouldn’t have been easy to play reserve grade, given Martin has featured in an NRL grand final and played four tests for his country, but he set an example for the squad.
“It didn’t bother me,” said Martin. “I just wanted to play footy. I suppose if I had a solid year last year where I was happy with how I was playing and I thought I had done enough to play first grade then I would [be]. But there were a lot of setbacks. So I wasn’t too fussed — I was just happy to be back out there.”
Martin remains an intense competitor — one of the toughest on the Warriors roster, if you talk to teammates — but has gained a new perspective, especially since the brain bleed he suffered in 2019 which forced his premature retirement.
He returned via club footy in Waikato, then the Broncos in 2022.
“I am not as caught up as I would have been a few years ago when I was playing,” said Martin. “I am just going with the flow.”
That mindset was necessary last season. After starting the campaign alongside Shaun Johnson, he suffered a broken leg in the round six match against the Newcastle Knights. It was a horrific injury — described by a Warriors staffer as a “chaotic fracture” — as his fibula shattered into pieces. It meant a long rehabilitation. He made it back by September — featuring in all three playoff games — before re-injuring his leg in the preliminary final defeat in Brisbane.
The pressure created by the inserted plate on the bone caused a stress reaction, essentially a crack, lower down the leg.
“I played the rest of the game out but it was sore,” recalled Martin. “I came back home and I wasn’t too sure what it was. Then a week later I was still limping around so I got scans and sure enough. The whole year injured and then you get injured again in the last game. A bit frustrating.”
Martin spent most of the off season in a moon boot and didn’t resume full training until January. Since then his progress has been impressive.
Metcalf got the inside running in pre-season, before his unfortunate injury against Newcastle and now Martin can establish himself.
He is an ideal foil for Johnson, with an underrated playmaking ability, a handy short kicking game and tough defence. Despite making his debut back in early 2016, Martin has accumulated only 79 NRL games. But he’s a veteran of four NRL environments (Panthers, Cowboys, Broncos and Warriors) and the next chapter could be the best yet.
“When you’ve got a great attitude, you’re fit, you’re healthy, you want to work hard, it’s going to happen for you eventually, especially if you’ve got talent,” said coach Andrew Webster. “Te Maire’s got it all and his work ethic, and being a good person, is going to get him where he wants to, so he just needs a bit of luck with his body, and he’ll get it.”