North Queensland recruit Esan Marsters believes he can produce his best football in Townsville, after being inconsistent last NRL season with the Wests Tigers.
NZ Kiwis centre Marsters has begun life at the Cowboys, after his surprise release from the final year of his contract at Concord last month.
He reportedly sought a contract upgrade at the Tigers, but was turned down and given a three-year deal by North Queensland instead.
In his first interview since joining the club, Marsters conceded he had underperformed in 2019 under Tigers (and Kiwis) coach Michael Maguire.
"I think, for myself, looking back on the season that I had, a bit inconsistent with some performances that I've had," Marsters told reporters on Tuesday.
"But I think, being at the Tigers for a very long time, I wanted to change the scenery I was in and just challenged myself off the field, as much as on the field.
"It came up unexpectedly for me. I spoke to my manager and I spoke to my wife as well, just to clear up things and to see what was better for me.
"I feel like I can play my best footy up here, coming to a new environment, working for my spot and just looking forward to new challenges."
Marsters, 23, will be a welcome addition to a Cowboys side that have released Javid Bowen, Jordan Kahu, Nene Macdonald and Enari Tuala over the past year.
He will compete with veterans Justin O'Neill and Tom Opacic for centre spots, but Masters has yet to begin field training, after knee surgery - the first major operation of his career, since debuting in 2017.
"I've been in rehab for a couple of weeks and those boys have been training hard, so they'll be training for a spot," Marsters said.
"I have to come out and prove myself, and just hopefully get a spot in round one.
"It's been six weeks now, since I had the operation, and it's looking pretty well. I'm just itching to get back on the field with the boys and connect with a lot of them."
AAP
