He was used to wearing the number six jersey at Cbus Super Stadium as the Titans chief playmaker, but Aidan Sezer never thought he would return as a dummy half.
Yet that is the position he has been reluctantly forced into with the Canberra Raiders following Josh Hodgson's ACL injury, and the departure of Kurt Baptiste.
Siliva Havili, who had played 24 NRL games in four seasons, started the match in the No.9 jersey but it was Sezer, selected as halfback but who started on the bench, who spent the most time of the match at dummy half - for the first time in his junior or senior career.
Sezer, who played from the 24th minute until the 74th, almost crept over from dummy half in the 64th to snatch victory but a strong tackle by Ryan James stopped him centimetres short.
He admits his position in the line-up may be a week-to-week proposition but coach Ricky Stuart was happy with his start to the foreign role.
''Siliva was very good in his initial game for us and Aidan was very good for a halfback going in to play nine,'' Stuart said.
Even with the hooking dilemma, Sam Williams returning to the club and Blake Austin big enough to play several positions, Sezer revealed he'd been training all pre-season at halfback until a fortnight ago when Stuart took him aside and said he might have to think about spending time at dummy half.
He showed he offers a dangerous kicking game out of dummy half, can handle the defensive load and has the awareness needed to play in the ruck.
''I'm a professional footballer and it's not my preference [to play hooker] if I'm being honest but if the coaches think I can do a job there then so be it,'' Sezer said.
''I trained all the off-season at half and a couple of weeks ago Sticky [Stuart] pulled me aside and said I might have to do a job at hooker. You have to do what you can for the team in tough times.
''Definitely playing half all my career, I'm not used to it. I still have to adapt to it.
''I have to do a lot more work in the middle. I thought I found it alright and punched out a few minutes.
''I have never played hooker ever in my life, let alone in the NRL, so it's new, that's for sure. It's probably a week to week proposition.''
