Manly captain Daly Cherry-Evans has turned the clock back to the same match preparation that made him one of the biggest stars in the NRL.
Cherry-Evans is eying off a personal battle with Sydney Roosters halfback Mitchell Pearce ahead of Friday evening's blockbuster at Allianz Stadium.
Fresh off setting up five tries to dismantle Canterbury 36-0 on Saturday, Cherry-Evans said he is now relishing the opportunity to match up against the 15-time NSW playmaker.
"There was definitely a period in my career where I did go away from that," Cherry-Evans said.
"I probably didn't read too much into the opposition. But it's something that I did enjoy when I first came into first grade, looking at who I was up against.
"I think it's something that I've taken on board again this year."
Sixth-placed Manly have gone from wooden-spoon contenders to the competition's form side in the space of a fortnight.
The last time Cherry-Evans spoke at the club's Narrabeen headquarters, only the local paper turned up - a far cry from the reporters who swarmed into the double digits and greeted him there on Tuesday morning.
"Two weeks is a bloody long time in rugby league," he said.
It was on that occasion a fortnight ago that Cherry-Evans laughed off the suggestion that coach Trent Barrett was under pressure.
His response drew criticism from the likes of Queensland legend Gorden Tallis, who accused the Manly halfback of not caring since signing his lifetime deal at the club in 2015.
Cherry-Evans has since played key roles in Manly's upset 30-8 win in North Queensland and Saturday's drubbing of the Bulldogs.
But he insisted Tallis' comments didn't affect him.
"All I did was support my coach and made what I believe was a fair statement," he said.
"(Tallis) is entitled to his opinion, that's fair enough. I'm a big boy, I've got think skin around me. It's going to take more to try and hurt me."
The 28-year-old is no stranger to criticism.
He has often been on the wrong end of it since re-signing at Manly rather than heading to the Gold Coast, and he said he kept any frustration from it "bottled up inside of him".
One day, he jokes, it might pop out in the form of a pimple.
However he said he was more concerned with attempting to overcome a Roosters defence that has leaked just 60 points in the opening month.
"They've obviously got systems in place that put teams under pressure when they have the ball," he said.
"We need to keep patient.
"Points may not come as easy as they did on the weekend."
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