He was born the son of a rugby league great but he wasted little time carving out a name for himself.
Mitchell Pearce is one of the game's elite.
Son of Balmain legend Wayne Pearce, the nib Newcastle Knights' No.7 was born April 7, 1989.
While his nickname Ju Ju or Junior Junior stems from his father, Pearce is his own man.
It was 2007 when a teenage Pearce made his NRL debut for the Roosters.
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It was Round 2 against North Queensland and the Tri colours were flogged 43-6 but that didn't deter Pearce or his coach.
The half finished the year with 16 top grade games to his name and a new contract keeping him in Bondi until the end of 2010.
While his rookie year was impressive, the following season was a breakout.
Pearce made his representative debut in May at the age of 19.
First, he played for City in the annual City v Country clash before being selected for NSW to make his State of Origin debut in game three of the 2008 series.
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Pearce finished that season having played 25 NRL games and scoring seven tries.
The following season he scored eight tries and set up 16.
In 2009 he stepped up his kicking game with 8,550 metres despite it being a disappointing season for the Roosters who finished with the wooden spoon.
He didn't feature in the Origin series but he did extend his NRL contract until the end of 2013.
In 2010, he returned to the Blues and experienced his first grand final.
It was a 32-8 loss to St George Illawarra.
In 2011 Pearce clocked up 100 NRL games. He also scored his first Origin try in series opener.
The following year saw the half play 22 game and score 10 tries at Club level.
Early in 2013 Pearce extended his contract with the Roosters to the end of the 2017 season.
He also won a premiership. The Roosters beat Manly 26-18. He finished the year with 26 matches, 24 try-assits and five tries.
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In 2014 he was overlooked for Origin but returned the following year.
He was also an NRL All Star. He's the youngest player ever to reach the 200-game mark.
It was a milestone he achieved in 2015. He was also appointed co-captain of the Roosters that year.
An off-field incident saw him lose the co-captaincy in 2016 and while he only featured in 12 games, he finished the season in some of the best form of his career and 11 try-assists.
Last season was his last year with the Roosters.
Pearce played 23 games, kicked three field goals and helped guide the Roosters to second spot on the ladder and the preliminary final.
At the end of the season he decided to join the Knights and signed a four-year-deal.
He made his debut for the Club in the first round where he kicked the match winning field goal against Manly.
This weekend, he clocks up 250 NRL games.
