A confident Daniel Vidot feels he's starting to prove the doubters wrong after the hulking winger marked his third-straight NRL appearance with two tries for Brisbane in their 44-10 victory over Manly.
Seemingly set for the Red Hill exit only a matter of months ago, Vidot justified his selection over incumbent winger Lachlan Maranta by scoring tries in 24th and 56th minute during the 34-point victory in front of a Suncorp Stadium crowd of 28,691 on Friday night.
The 25-year-old demonstrated brute strength to burrow his way through three Sea Eagles defenders for his first try and latched onto a Jack Reed pass for his second.
He finished the match with two tries, 229 metres from 20 carries, three line breaks and two offloads, with his only blemish a try to opposite number Peter Hiku.
Vidot's stint at the Broncos seemed over in late March when the Samoa international was granted compassionate leave after a potential move to premiers Souths collapsed.
Stuck behind teammates Lachlan Maranta, Dale Copley, Jordan Kahu and Jack Reed in Brisbane's backline pecking order, Vidot was understandably frustrated by a lack of opportunity.
Contracted to Broncos until end of the year, the Brisbane-born beast had to wait until Round 5 to play his first match of the season after making a crucial defensive error in Brisbane's 14-12 extra-time win against Wigan in the World Club Series, drawing the wrath of coach Wayne Bennett.
"There are always haters out there so you've just got to get rid of them out of your head," Vidot said.
"I just went out there [on Friday night] and did my thing."
Vidot was a revelation during his first season with the Broncos, drawing comparisons to former wingers Wendell Sailor and Lote Tuqiri due to his size and ability to churn out the metres and take pressure off his forwards.
The Souths Acacia Ridge junior made a whopping 3,738 metres from the wing in 2014, scoring eight tries and making 56 tackle busts from 23 games.
All bar five of his 109 NRL games have been played on the wing, although a future in the forwards might still be an option for the 188-centimetre, 105-kilogram monster, who played prop for the Broncos' feeder team Ipswich Jets during a stint in the Intrust Super Cup this season.
Handling errors have let Vidot down in the past, bombing a try against the Dragons with a costly mistake over the try-line during Brisbane's 12-10 loss in Round 7.
After 20 errors in 2014, he has only made three so far this season and is continuing to work and improve his game regardless of whether he makes Bennett's weekly team sheet.
"I've been trying to work on [my error rate] and I've definitely built up a lot of confidence on the training paddock and that showed out there [against Manly]," he said.
"Wayne needed me and I put my hand up. Whatever team he picks I'll support it. I'm a Broncos supporter through and through and whoever he chooses I'm happy."
