The 22-year-old left Rabbitohs skipper Greg Inglis clutching at air to score a crucial midway through the first half of his side’s 16-12 victory on Friday night. 

For a man chasing a maiden NSW jumper, blowing past one of Queensland, and the game’s, all-time greats is a fair feather in the cap.

With hopefully a lot more highlights to come, Aitken said the four-pointer will remain a memorable one.

“It’d definitely a special one,” Aitken said post-match.

“GI’s an amazing player, he’s played so many Origins and Tests for Australia and he’s a world class player and a world class centre.

“You’ve got to be aware of those players because they’re lethal. You’ve got make sure your defence is on-song.

“He’s one of the best centres to ever play the game so it’s definitely a challenge to come up against that sort of player.

“You want to put your best foot forward and I was happy to come away with a try.

“I’ve always been the sort of player to challenge people and try and beat them one-on-one so it was good to do that tonight.”

The effort certainly grabbed the attention of Blues coach Brad Fittler who was calling the game for Channel 9.

He’s long been a fan of the Pambula product, but Aitken said his Origin ambition is a largely unspoken one.

“It gives me some confidence but I’m not too worried about that at the moment,” he said.

“As a kid you dream of playing Origin and if that comes this year I’ll be more than happy to play and I’ll put my best foot forward there.

“I back myself in most situations like that. I just want to make sure I’m playing consistent footy with the Dragons and let that do the talking.”

Origin call-up or not, it’s a strong return from a 2017 campaign that was plagued by hamstring and shoulder injuries and culminated on off-season surgery.

It was the first time he’d faced such a run in his career, but he’s confident he’s well on the road back to top form. 

“I feel like I’ve still got a lot of improvement to come,” he said.

“I had a few injuries last year but I think when I was playing, I felt I was playing some good football. I think that’s the key with me, being on the park and playing some regular consistent football. 

“I feel like I’ve got a  lot potential there, I’m tapping into that and playing some good footy.

“I’m happy with my game at the moment but I still think I can get better.”

Aitken’s four-pointer took his overall tally to four tries from five games, matching the effort of fellow club-leader, and Origin hopeful, Nene Macdonald on the left flank.

Macdonald and Lafai have managed seven tries between them, while Aitken has combined with Jason Nightingale for five on right, giving the Dragons plenty of across-the-park attacking potency. 

“We’re both going well, both edges, we’re both scoring tries and that’s what you want to see on the park,” Aitken said.

“You want to see that balance in the football team where both edges can score. I think that comes down to Ben Hunt and Gareth Widdop being quality players and world-class halves.”