Former Test seamer Trent Copeland says he has returned from the best and worst season of his career with his damaged confidence rebuilt.

After a stunning introduction to representative cricket in the 2009-10 Sheffield Shield season in which he claimed 35 wickets in just five matches, Copeland’s rise gathered momentum when he made his Test debut during Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka in 2011.

However Copeland’s career stalled badly after that successful three-Test tour as his confidence took a hammering and he slipped down the pecking order of Test bowlers.

Although the largely forgotten man of Australian cricket admitted he doesn’t know what went wrong, Copeland said his impressive haul of 2-54 and 4-57 in spearheading NSW to an eight-wicket win over WA in the opening Sheffield Shield game of the season last week shows he can still cut it as an elite cricketer.

“I suppose the successful start I had to my career, I didn’t follow that up (last season) and I wanted to knock that on the head this year,” Copeland said ahead of NSW’s Shield clash with Tasmania beginning at Bankstown Oval in Sydney on Wednesday.

“It was a little bit up and down, it was the highest point in my career going and getting my (Test) debut in Sri Lanka.

“But I found it quite tough, probably not at the time I didn’t realise, but I suppose looking back on it, it wasn’t a great season from my point of view but you can only deal with it at the time and do what you think is best.

“I don’t think there is any one way of dealing with it and when it does happen at the time I don’t think you realise how difficult it can be.”

Copeland said NSW’s early start to the domestic season, due to Twenty20 Champions League commitments, gives them an opportunity to quickly erase the disappointment that was 2011/2012 in which they finished second last in the Sheffield Shield with just one win.

NSW’s defeat of a strong WA line-up was built on the back of the bowling effort led by Copeland and backed up by Doug Bollinger, Josh Hazlewood and Moises Henriques.

All of Copeland’s wickets bar Mitchell Johnson were top order batsman.

And he plans on targeting former Australian skipper Ricky Pointing in their second match.

“Last week WA’s line-up was about as good as it gets, and you look at Tassie this week and it’s not much easier if not harder. It’s always nice to see R Ponting in the opposition’s line-up and maybe you can try and knock him over.”