Haumole Olakau'atu credits Call of Duty sessions in his "man cave" for helping heal the troublesome calf injury he feared would deny him a second State of Origin cap.
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Four days after making his NSW debut from the bench in game one on June 5, Olakau'atu limped from the field in the first half of Manly's round-14 loss to Penrith.
Scans showed no serious damage to the forward's calf but he nevertheless needed time to heal the injury, with ice, compression and resting all prescribed by the Sea Eagles medical staff ahead of round 15.
All the while, Olakau'atu was fearing for his spot in the NSW team, as a result of both his calf complaint and NSW's 38-10 loss to Queensland in game one.
"I was worried (about the injury) at the start of (that) week, if I was being honest," Olakau'atu told AAP.
"I'm pretty sure all the boys would have been having that thought (of being dropped) after a loss."
To take his mind off the injury and Origin, Olakau'atu spent his free time at the computer screen.
Olakau'atu is a Call of Duty: Warzone enthusiast, with Manly teammate Tolu Koula and former Sea Eagles Christian Tuipulotu and Moses Suli among his regular gaming buddies.
The game came in handy as Olakau'atu raced the clock to recover for Origin II, to be played in Melbourne next Wednesday.
"I have my own little man cave and I had my PC next to me, game ready," he said.
"I just iced my leg and played 'COD' all night. I was always keeping them (Manly) up to date with everything I did."
Olakau'atu was also in contact with Blues coach Michael Maguire during breaks from the screen
"He did call me a couple of times during the week. He was stoked that my scans were good," he said.
Olakau'atu made it through his most crucial fitness test, the Sea Eagles' game against St George Illawarra last Sunday, managing to score a try and play all 80 minutes of the 30-14 win.
Calf injuries can be tricky - just ask axed Blues halfback Nicho Hynes, who had to contend with one during camp for the series opener.
Olakau'atu will be monitored by the Blues' medical staff but does not consider himself in doubt for Origin II.
"I've just got to stay up to date with that calf niggle," he said on Tuesday.
"The calf is feeling a bit sore right now so I'll probably just have to ease into it tomorrow or if not have a bit of a longer warm-up."
Olakau'atu will still get his Call of Duty fix during NSW's camp for game two; he packed his PlayStation 5 in his luggage.
"When I get to Leura, I'm plugging it in straight away and having a few games," he said.
Australian Associated Press
