Mead eyeing 4th Cup

Kumuls centre not hanging up his boots anytime soon

KUMULS veteran David Mead has no plans to hang up his boots just yet as he aims to play in his fourth Rugby League World Cup in England next year.
Born on Nov 4 1988, the 31-year-old Catalans Dragon made his debut for Papua New Guinea in the 2008 World Cup in Australia and has been a mainstay ever since.
“I am feeling good physically and mentally,” Mead told The National last week from Perpignan, where the city – like the rest of France – is on lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic.
“So I will make myself available for the Kumuls.
“If I can make it to a fourth World Cup, it would be great,” added the Tubusereia native, who played 147 games for the Gold Coast Titans (2009-2016) and 13 for the Brisbane Broncos (2017) in Australia’s National Rugby League before moving to France two years ago.
In a report on http://exclusiveinsight.com last year, Mead — who moved to Australia at the age of 12 — credited PNG for giving “my first opportunity in the 2008 World Cup”.
“I was a just young guy who had finished playing under-20s and not knowing if I was going to transition into first grade or not,” the father-of-two said in the report.
“I got an opportunity to play in the World Cup for PNG and I think that boosted my chances of playing in the NRL on the Gold Coast.
“The (Titans) coach (John Cartwright) saw me play in the World Cup and offered me a chance to train with the team in the pre-season. Fast forward a bit and I ended playing first grade that year and I certainly put that down to PNG giving me the opportunity.
“That’s why I try to do everything I can to play for PNG or do good things in PNG.”