Injured Rooster Luke Keary says he won’t let the fear of suffering another head knock hold him back despite the recent concussion-induced retirements of champion teammates Jake Friend and Boyd Cordner.
Sitting out the remainder of the 2021 season due to an ACL injury, Keary himself has experienced a number of concussions throughout his career.
Dating back to the midway point of the 2019 NRL season, Keary sent shockwaves around the NRL world when he suffered his fourth serious head knock in the space of 15 months, forcing him to be sidelined for four weeks.
Keary’s Roosters teammates Friend and Cordner both called time on their careers earlier this year due to repeated head knocks, with the latter admitting he got to a stage where he was fearing when the next concussion might come.
Speaking to 9News Sydney, Keary was asked if he could relate to Cordner’s fears.
“I felt where Boyd was coming from,” he said.
“I think if any player gets to that point, where they’re wondering when the next one is going to be and they’re worried about their health, and they’ve spoken medical people who are also worried … I think it’s a pretty good time to walk away.
“But I’m definitely not there yet, no.”
With Keary out of action, his place in the side has been taken by teen star Sam Walker.
Walkers’ emergence has been a bright spot for the Roosters in a season marred by injuries to champion players, and according to Keary, the young star reminds him of legendary Cowboys playmaker, Johnathan Thurston.
“I think he’s got a little bit of JT (Johnathan Thurston) in him,” Keary said.
“He’s a really good passer of the ball, he’s got really good skills, he can find his way through holes and he sees the game differently to most players.”
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