Told he was too small to play for Parramatta, Luke Keary will have the chance to show the Eels what they missed out on when he takes them on for South Sydney on Friday night.
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A then 15-year-old Harold Matthews hopeful, Keary was told in no uncertain terms that he wouldn’t crack it in the NRL because of his diminutive nature. Fast-forward seven years and Keary is trying to make his mark for South Sydney.
He had a brief stint at Manly – where he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament – before joining the Rabbitohs under-20s squad and stands five centimetres taller than halves partner Adam Reynolds and Parramatta No.7 Chris Sandow.
“They told me I was a bit too little,” Keary said before his clash against the Eels. “I went and played union. I was more into the union after Parra let me go. It was a blessing in disguise because I got to enjoy my footy. I came back to Souths when I finished school.
“I always loved league. Union was my secondary sport. I knew I was always going to play league. I played union through school because of all my mates were playing. I knew I wanted to come back and I was lucky enough to come back to league.
“It was really disappointing. You’re young and people are telling you that you’re too small to play footy. It’s not the best [feeling]. It’s hard, the recruitment officers have a hard job. They have to make split decisions when we are younger. They don’t know how you are going to turn out. It’s hard to see how a kid is going to turn out.”
Keary has been named on the interchange bench to play his second game in the top grade since a pectoral tear at the Auckland Nines ruled him out for five months. The injury halted coach Michael Maguire’s plans to partner Keary and Reynolds in the halves, while shifting captain John Sutton to the back row.
Keary returned to the NRL in South Sydney’s last-start loss to the Titans following two games in the NSW Cup.
“I thought I was going to miss the year,” Keary said. “Not being out for the year I was pretty happy. I was pretty devastated at the time but looking back I'm only young and hopefully I've got a long career ahead of me and it's just a minor hiccup. I'm just looking forward to the back end of the year. Madge (Maguire) is showing faith in me and giving me a crack.”
Reynolds is expected to play against the Eels despite finishing the match against the Titans with a knee injury.
“It's going to take a month or two to get to full match fitness but my body's feeling pretty fresh compared to the other boys,” Keary said.
