The Samoan International was a much heralded signing for the joint venture following two standout seasons with Canterbury but struggled to find top form as he battled niggling injuries.

It saw him sent back to the Illawarra Cutters to re-find his groove and ultimately ended with Lafai and teammate Siliva Havili charged with affray and offensive behaviour following a drunken night out in Wollongong less than 24 hours before the Dragons round 20 clash with Wests Tigers.

The pair were immediately stood down by the club in the aftermath before a push from the playing group saw them quickly re-instated.

They’ve since pleaded not guilty to the charges and will face a hearing next month.

It means Lafai is limited in what he can say on the matter, but the 25-year-old expressed gratitude to his teammates for their support in a difficult time.

“I think last year was all a learning curve for myself,’ Lafai said.

“I’ve got to put that behind me and learn from it, which I did. The boys really supported me and the coaching staff have been awesome as well. 

“If you have a tight group around you, when you have your downs it goes a long way to helping you get through those times.

“I got really stuck into preseason, I’ve been working really hard with the coaches and having the boys around me to help me… it’s been really good.”

“I definitely want to pay the boys back for having my back by getting stuck into training and doing my job as best as I can every week.”

Off-contract this season, Lafai is also playing to earn a new deal, though his future at the club may well depend on the outcome of negotiations with star fullback Josh Dugan.

He saw off a challenge from young-gun Taane Milne to claim a spot in the centres for round one against Penrith where he had 16 runs for a 138 metres, showing the benefits of being injury-free.

He produced 14 carries for 126 metres in the Dragons 16-10 win over Cronulla last week and is confident he’s not far off capturing the form that saw him score 24 tries in his last two seasons with the Bulldogs.

“Getting through a tough preseason injury free has been good and I think that’s the key for me,” Lafai said.

“If I can stay injury free it goes a long way to me playing some consistent footy for the team.

“If I can keep working on little things myself, on and off the field, and keep improving I think I can go a long way in helping the team out and getting back to some of that form.”