Group 20 rugby league
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YENDA Blueheelers coach Roy Romeo believes new teenage Kiwi import Kenny Tata could be the club's Mr Fix-It in 2013.
Tata, 19, met his new teammates for the first time in a pre-season session at Collina on Tuesday barely 24 hours after touching down in Griffith.
Blueheelers coach Roy Romeo was impressed with what the strapping young utility brought to the table.
"He looks like he knows what he's doing with the ball in his hands and his fitness is pretty good," he said.
"Everything we heard about him from New Zealand was positive. He's a quiet lad but he's a great guy and he'll do well here."
But exactly what position he plays in is still a mystery.
Tata prefers to play in the centres, but Romeo indicated he will be tested in a few different areas around the park when pre-season trial matches begin next month.
"We'll see what we need," Romeo said.
"Our contact in New Zealand said he's got the potential to turn into a good front rower, and we're hoping for that.
"But to have a bloke who can play a number of different roles is always handy to have."
Tata is an important addition for Yenda and follows the signings of rising star Tom Sellars and ex-Waratah Tigers coach Kodie Charles.
While the club has lost a number of key men across the off-season including veteran Trevor Richards, hooker Ray Mavroudis and forward pack leader Lance Poka the Blueheelers are on course for an assault on the finals, Romeo said.
"Those guys were always going to be hard to replace but I reckon we've done pretty well," he said. "If all goes well there might be a couple more to come. "Now it's time to move ahead and buckle down and train.
"It's going to be an even comp this year but everyone's pretty keen to give finals a really good crack after missing out last year."