Mack Mason has revealed the personal strain his tough reintroduction to Super Rugby took on him last year, but the long-time heir apparent to the Waratahs No.10 jersey is confident he now has the tools at his disposal to succeed.

It was three years ago that the 23-year-old arrived at the Waratahs eager to make his mark.

The initial signs were promising as Mason, who had been tutored under Cooper Cronk at the Melbourne Storm and then came through the Reds academy, was thrown to the wolves against the competition’s best, the Crusaders, and came out alive following a last minute call up for Test playmaker Bernard Foley.

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Mack Mason delivered a composed performance on debut against the Crusaders in 2017 but didn’t start again for another two years. Source: Getty Images

But stuck behind Foley, the young shot caller didn’t start another match for another two years until Foley was wrapped in cotton wool as the Waratahs fulfilled Rugby Australia’s wishes of resting players of national interest for two Super Rugby fixtures.

Hungry to succeed and prove his worth, Mason stumbled and so did the Waratahs, crashing to a 31-30 loss against the lowly Sunwolves in Newcastle.

The Waratahs left the Central Coast embarrassed, Mason with his head buried in his hands.

Having failed to grab his opportunity, for the first time the Queenslander questioned whether his big move south had been worth it.

“Probably after that Sunwolves game (was the only time I doubted myself),” Mason said on Thursday while being named at fly-half for the Waratahs’ first pre-season match.

“I got hung out to dry a little bit. But that was on my own performance. That was probably the only week I’ve really thought that (I’m) really struggling.”

Mack Mason was stuck behind Bernard Foley at the Waratahs. Source: Getty Images

Mason didn’t get another call up for another two months.

But he didn’t play another minute until the final match of the year, as Foley was rested and a second-string Waratahs side was humbled 49-12 by a quality Highlanders outfit.

Ten months on and suddenly Mason is in control of his own destiny.

Foley has said Sayonara to Super Rugby and Mason now has the chance to make the jersey his own.

His first chance to impress new coach Rob Penney comes on Friday evening at Leichhardt Oval, having been given the No.10 jersey in a new-look side to play the Highlanders

Reflecting on the struggles of 2019, and on the back of a brutal pre-season, Mason believes he’s now equipped to handle the pressure and pace of Super Rugby.

“Looking back at it, I thought there were parts I did really well (during the loss to the Sunwolves) and then the errors came in the second half,” Mason said.

“I was a bit fatigued probably at the 60 minute mark and then made errors on errors.

“The biggest thing I learnt was just to come back into that moment, into the present. I’ve been working on a different things with Shane Smith, our new manager who’s ex-SAS, so he had a few points there on how to get yourself back to the present so you’re not reliving that moment over and over and over in your head.”

It’s something Foley reminded him of before leaving to Japan.

“I was pretty close to Nard (Foley),” Mason said.

“I still talk to him here and there now, but probably the biggest thing he said was, ‘it’s your team now’ at the end of the year. He just sent me a WhatsApp and said, ‘good luck for the future, just own it and keep building on what you created’.”

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While Mason will get first crack at the No.10 jersey, the former Junior Wallaby is under no illusions that the chief playmaking role is his.

Jack Maddocks’ arrival from the Rebels means Penney now has options up his sleeve, with many expecting Wallabies regular Kurtley Beale to pop up at fly-half.

Maddocks, too, is a former playmaker, while another Junior Wallaby, Will Harrison, is a young man on the rise.

Nor is the No.10 jersey the only position open at the Waratahs following the departures of Tolu Latu, Sekope Kepu, Nick Phipps, Curtis Rona and likely Adam Ashley-Cooper.

And it’s the competition for spots that Mason believes is pushing the Waratahs’ entire squad more than ever before.

“There’s just a bit of an energy coming through at the moment now that positions are up for grabs,” Mason says.

“In the past we’ve all done the pre-season and a lot of guys have come back into the new year and played Super Rugby, but this year it’s not like that. This year we all get to put our hand up for that spot and whoever gets it, owns it and if you own it you’ll stay there for a long time.”

In the past trial matches have simply been thought of as warm-up games for Australia’s Super Rugby franchises.

But for Mason – and his class of 2020 – the stakes have never been higher.