The Merimbula-Pambula junior enjoyed a stellar debut season in 2015, making 23 straight first-grade appearances after debuting in round three.

His start to 2016 was a little slower, named on the wing for round one as Josh Dugan looked switch from fullback to centre and was dropped a week later for the first time at any level in his young career.

He earned praise from coach Paul McGregor for the way he responded to the setback, scoring five tries in 11 games and earning a maiden rep jumper with Country since being recalled in round three. 

The 21-year-old said Dugan’s desired switch and the arrival of Tim Lafai meant he was always going to have to work hard for a spot.

“I didn’t take [getting dropped] as a reality check or anything like that I just took it as a challenge,” Aitken said.

“I was never expecting to be given a first grade spot my attitude was always that I needed to work hard. 

“I knew when preseason came round I probably wasn’t in the starting team with the players we’d brought in and I just wanted to prove a point to get into that starting side. 

“When I got dropped I just wanted to accept the challenge and make sure when I got back there I stayed there. I think my form’s been pretty good since coming back. 

“You can’t play your absolute best game every week and it depends on what opportunities you get but I think I’ve been going pretty good. There’s still a lot of areas I can improve.”