Chris Lewis has experienced the physical and psychological hardship of clinging to his NRL dream amid an avalanche of serious injuries and club transfers.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
And now he has experienced the immense personal satisfaction of summiting the mountain.
On Wednesday, the 28-year-old - who grew up playing footy in Ashford and whose parents, Mick and Pauleen, still live there - signed a two-year deal with the Storm, after the club threw him a lifeline this season via a one-year development contract (he is not part of the Storm's 30-man NRL squad, but will be next season).
Read also:
Now Lewis - who this season finally made his NRL debut, as his parents proudly looked on - has the security he long craved as he looks to build on his five NRL appearances.
The 190cm and 105kg second-rower/centre, the oldest player, at age 27, to make his NRL debut in Storm colours, hopes to make it six appearances when Melbourne play the winner of Saturday's semi-final clash between the Roosters and the Raiders, in the qualifying final the following Friday.
He is potentially one match away from playing in the grand final - a year after lining up for the Sunshine Coast Falcons in the Instruct Super Cup and working as a history teacher at Caloundra State High, and a decade after signing with St George-Illawarra straight out of high school.
Sport is a wellspring of inspirational against-the-odds stories - and now there is a chapter on Lewis in that eternal tome.
"It's pretty amazing to have that certainty," Lewis said of his two-year deal. He added: "You know you're locked in for the next two years: it's a great feeling."
Lewis made his NRL debut in a round four win over the Rabbitohs, coming off the bench late in the match. He made his starting debut, in the second-row, in a narrow loss to the Dragons two weeks ago - when the Storm rested a number of players ahead of the finals.
He scored his sole NRL try in the clash - racing 20m to cross out wide, an experience he described as "amazing".
He also said: "If you come off the bench, you sort of don't know how you stack up against blokes when they're fresh.
"So, to get out there at the start of the game and see that it wasn't on another planet, it was something I can do, it was a really good experience to be part of."
Lewis was an interchange selection in the qualifying final win over the Eels on Saturday, but did not get used.
However, he got a "big boost" out of knowing that Storm coach Craig Bellamy had entrusted him with an interchange spot in a finals clash.
"It's pretty surreal to think that last year I was teaching and playing Queensland Cup [Instrust Super Cup], and now I'm a chance of playing in a preliminary final and one game away from a grand final."
