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It has come full circle for Stacey Jones.
When he was an impudent youngster catapulting himself onto the rugby league scene, he was never shy about teasing his more senior team-mates and calling them 'old fella'.
So when a more venerable Jones turned up at Warriors HQ for pre-season training in November, that a few of the 'old fella' jibes were directed his way.
"It seemed like yesterday I was doing it to the old fellas," Jones says. "But Pricey [Steve Price] is still there, so at least I'm not the oldest."
At 32 he is by no means over the hill. But he is also not the precocious 19-year-old who forced his way into the Warriors' No 7 jersey in 1995 or even the brilliant 26-year-old regarded as the best rugby league player in the world in 2002.
The reality of his latest comeback has well and truly hit with pre-season training.
He never did delight in hours of running from one cone to the next in the hot, summer sun, lifting weights in the gym or holding tackle bags for the likes of Manu Vatuvei to run into. It's arduous stuff.
"I never liked pre-season training but 95 per cent of players don't like it. I wasn't a lazy trainer. Halfbacks can't be lazy trainers. They are always one of the fittest and weights-wise they are one of the strongest pound for pound... but I was never in the extras group," he grins.
"But I'm not doing pre-season just to do the training. I'm doing it with a view to playing. I was always going to give it 100 per cent and try to offer something to the club."
And that's what Jones couldn't resist when Warriors coach Ivan Cleary asked if he would consider coming out of 'retirement' after watching him in the All Golds last October.
It had often been suggested, usually jokingly, around Warriors HQ that Cleary should ask Jones to play again. When Cleary learned the circumstances of Jones' departure from France and that he had not retired on his terms (Jones asked for a release from Les Catalans, which was granted provided he didn't return to the NRL for at least a year) the idea started to gain traction.
Jones often finds it hard to say, 'no'. He couldn't resist a good comeback.
He made a couple with the Kiwis in both 2005 and 2006, with stunning results, but he was still playing professional league then. This one is easily the most remarkable.
"I have had the odd person say, 'you're taking a bit of a risk'," Jones says. "But what have I got to lose? If it doesn't work out, people will say I tarnished my reputation, but what's reputation? It's just sport.
"I haven't made the wrong decision and even if it doesn't work out I will never say I made the wrong decision.
"If I never did it, then I think that would have been the wrong decision. I am prepared for it to not work out."
Don't be fooled by his laissez-faire approach. Jones has always been easygoing but beneath his carefree exterior he is deadly serious not only about playing for the Warriors but also making a difference.
He sees this as an opportunity he thought would never come around and he wants to make sure he not only grasps it but also enjoys it.
It's also because rugby league is not the only thing in his life. He takes over the keys to a Subway franchise in Avondale tomorrow and will continue to work for Maori TV.
"I look at that [the Subway franchise] as my job now," he says. "I don't see league as my job any more. I am playing because I want to do it and I want to have fun. That's the good balance that I have.
"Football is going to be my get-away-from-it-all and chance to have fun. It's a new lease of life. I want to be able to enjoy it as much as I did when I was 19.
"I understand there are a lot of other players and they have a lot of halves with the likes of Nathan Fien but I am here to put pressure on a player like him and help out young kids like Isaac John and Liam Foran.
"I was a bit rusty at first and it's not like it came back to me just like that. I knew it never would. I think the first thing I needed was to get myself physically fit and the rest would hopefully come.
"It's hard to say how things are going. You can do whatever you want on the training field but it's when you get out on the football field that counts."
It's what Cleary is waiting for, too.
A couple of niggles have interrupted training but Cleary has seen enough to believe Jones could make a difference.
"When he gets the ball in his hands, he looks like he's got time and that's a good indicator. And he's got a good understanding of how we play.
"It comes down to how he adapts to the speed of the game and how his body holds up. There are some questions still there but it's going well so far.
"To my mind, the sooner he plays, the better, just for everyone's peace of mind. To see where he's at. I think he will play a significant role for us but how much of that is playing games, I don't know. There's no doubt he's a really good man to have around."
Even if he is an 'old fella'.
