As he sat on the sidelines watching his Joeys teammates play most of last season, rep footy was the furthest thing from Waratahs U19s skipper Eamon Doyle’s mind.

But after getting fit late last year, the Wollongong boy has made every post a winner and will captain NSW in the opening match of the Super 19s tournament against Melbourne Rebels at Leichhardt Oval this Sunday.

"It’s all happened pretty quick for me this year and 12 months ago I didn’t think I’d be in this position, so I’m trying to make the most of every opportunity,” Doyle told Rugby News during the week.

“I grew up down in Wollongong and played for Illawarra and (Woonoona) Shamrocks, then headed up to Joeys in year eight.

“I grew quite a bit in year 11 and started taking footy a bit more seriously but then I did my meniscus in my knee in year 12 and missed most of that season.

“I played a few games at the backend of year last year and fortunately Clev (Andrew Cleverley) invited me to do some training with the Waratahs academy and I’ve just tried to make the most of every opportunity since then.”