As children, Royce Hunt and his siblings would turn on the TV and watch their famous cousin Karmichael Hunt give his all for the Brisbane Broncos and Queensland Maroons.

"He was quite a player, so I guess he gave us some hope," Hunt said.

In his hometown of Kalgoorlie, about 600 kilometres east of Perth in Western Australia's historic Goldfields, Aussie Rules reigns supreme.

At 29, Hunt is the same age as fellow Kalgoorlie product Dom Sheed, whose left boot secured premiership glory for the West Coast Eagles in the 2018 AFL grand final.

But in the Goldfields, rugby league fans — and opportunities to play — are scarce.

Hunt will take the field for arguably the most important game of his uniquely challenging NRL career tonight.

Thanks to the support of his family, Hunt's success is also helping to boost the game's profile in Western Australia, where there is plenty of 'untapped potential'.

'Lots of travelling'

Born in Sydney, Hunt was only aged one when his family moved to WA.

Rugby league runs through his veins, with his father Rob having played at a high level in Western Sydney. 

"He's always been a footy-head, so it's always been a big part of our family," Hunt said.

"Even though we grew up in WA, we used to watch all the time."

However, finding teammates was a different story.

Hunt and his father clocked up countless hours on the Great Eastern Highway as he played for the Goldfields Titans, the Perth-based Willagee Bears or trialled for WA representative teams.

"We'd go up twice or maybe three times a year, just to play a game of park footy," he said.

Hunt's talent and work ethic were not going unnoticed.

When he was 15, Canterbury-Bankstown came knocking, asking him to join their development system, which would mean moving thousands of kilometres back to the city where he was born.

"I came over by myself, all my dad's family's here so I just stayed with them," he said.

"I just kept progressing step by step until eventually I made the NRL."

He made his first-grade debut with the Canberra Raiders in 2017 but would have to wait several years before his NRL career took off.

Since 2020, Hunt has played more than 70 games for the Cronulla Sharks and represented Samoa at a World Cup.

Now, he wants to see more West Australians have the chance to follow in his footsteps.

'Untapped potential'

Hunt is far from the first WA product to make it into the game's biggest leagues.

Fijian international Waqa Blake played as a junior in Perth, as did Parramatta NRLW star Kennedy Cherrington.

Hunt said there was plenty of "untapped potential" in the state. 

"Kids get taken over there from Queensland, from Sydney … their parents want to go work over there," he said.

According to NRL WA, participation in the sport has grown to about 4,500 junior and senior players in 2024.

WA is also firming as a frontrunner to rejoin the NRL in 2027, with the Western Bears expected to be announced as the league's 18th franchise.

Hunt said it would be a great pathway for WA talent.

"It'll give all those players over there, that have potential, an opportunity to show what they can do," he said.

Western connection 

Tonight, Hunt will come off the bench for the Sharks in their blockbuster elimination final against the North Queensland Cowboys.

It could be his last outing in a Sharks jersey, having recently signed with the Wests Tigers for 2025.

He said he would love nothing more than to finish at Cronulla with a premiership under his belt.

Watching on will be his wife Shavaun and their three-year-old son Wolf. 

While entrenched in Sydney with his young family, Hunt still feels connected to Kalgoorlie.

"It's not been the easiest road to get to where I am, but I wouldn't change it for anything," he said.

The sudden-death semi-final against the North Queensland Cowboys kicks off at 7:50pm (EST) in Sydney.