![PROTOTYPE: Max Altus, of Coonamble, is eyeing an NRL future. Photo: Peter Hardin PROTOTYPE: Max Altus, of Coonamble, is eyeing an NRL future. Photo: Peter Hardin](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/KUhQizDbwW8WqAyPP4x5yp/2cb9a930-b474-47ff-8d23-2f07560969d1.jpg/r0_0_5284_3511_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
At age 17, Max Altus has the texture of an NRL player in the making.
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It’s easy to imagine the hooker-cum-lock filling out physically and packing down in an NRL scrum.
And when he speaks, his tone identifies him as being in the same mental orbit as elite athletes: confident and focally single-minded.
![HARD: Altus believes that pressure makes or breaks people. HARD: Altus believes that pressure makes or breaks people.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/KUhQizDbwW8WqAyPP4x5yp/1625f9a4-8020-4564-bab9-cfca8f936b82.jpg/r0_0_423_678_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Seven years after playing his first league match, the Coonamble native – new to Year 12 at Farrer – has just been presented with his biggest break, and he knows it.
The Newcastle Knights have named him in their under-18 summer development squad, presenting him with the chance to make the club’s SG Ball Cup squad and showcase his talent before the most discerning rugby league judges – the people who would decide if he is made of the right stuff.
“That’s the plan [making the Knights’ SG Ball Cup squad],” he said.
![KNIGHTS ADVENTURE: Altus and his friend and fellow Farrer Year 12 student, Alek Hall, have been named in Newcastle's under-18 summer development squad. Photo: Peter Hardin KNIGHTS ADVENTURE: Altus and his friend and fellow Farrer Year 12 student, Alek Hall, have been named in Newcastle's under-18 summer development squad. Photo: Peter Hardin](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/KUhQizDbwW8WqAyPP4x5yp/e5619943-511b-437b-bdf4-b8d892400a48.jpg/r35_0_1166_637_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
“I’m pretty confident. I’ve been training hard. I’m a big believer in you get out what you put in.”
“This is a real big opportunity,” he added.
“It’s a big open window there. I’ve got to take the opportunity and not let it slip. Otherwise I could regret it one day.”
So far, Altus has ticked the right boxes in his formation as a gifted player.
![Altus and Hall, back row centre, celebrate North Tamworth's under-18 grand final win over Narrabri at Jack Woolaston Oval this year. Altus scored three tries in the match. Altus and Hall, back row centre, celebrate North Tamworth's under-18 grand final win over Narrabri at Jack Woolaston Oval this year. Altus scored three tries in the match.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/KUhQizDbwW8WqAyPP4x5yp/7b5fd47e-944e-4294-843a-1240efed7400.jpg/r0_0_1000_506_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
After deciding to pursue a league career at age 14, he captained the Country under-16 side on their 2016 tour of Samoa and this year he toured New Zealand with the Country under-18 side.
The better he has got, the more pressure he has felt.
“Pressure’s good,” he said. “It builds you as a person.
“If you can’t handle it, it sort of sums up who you are. So it’s good for you, I reckon.”
They played together in the 2016 Country under-16 team and were also teammates in the North Tamworth Bears’ premiership-winning under-18 outfit this year.
Altus said: “It makes things a bit easier. You’re not just going in there [Newcastle] yourself. You’re doing it with someone else. It makes it a little easier to take on.”