Warriors halfback Adam Keighran has waited a lifetime for his NRL opportunity
All the long trips down the F3, all the hours spent dreaming, practising, wishing for an NRL career have paid off for Warriors rookie Adam Keighran.
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In the front seat of the family’s Kia Sorrento, an exhausted Adam Keighran would sit quietly cradling dinner in his lap.
While other 16-year-olds were at home in their bedroom — or up to no good — Keighran was on the F3 freeway, eating chicken and rice from reheated Tupperware.
Three times a week, Keighran would lean into his dinner, or homework, on the final leg of a five-hour round trip from Belmore to his Kanwal home on the Central Coast.
“And what homework he couldn’t get finished, he’d do when he got home at around 9pm,’’ Keighran’s father Shane said.
“Then he’d go to bed and get ready to do it all again.
“There was a lot of hard yards and sacrifice to get where he is now.’’
Where Keighran is today is living his dream with the New Zealand Warriors, following lower-grade stints with the Bulldogs and Penrith.
And it’s a dream made even more meaningful by his opposition Sunday afternoon, the Wests Tigers.
Keighran was just seven when he and older brother Brad watched Benji Marshall flick-pass the Tigers to victory in the 2005 premiership, from their lounge room.
“We’d be sitting around watching the footy and they’d both have their heroes,’’ Shane said.
“Adam’s was Benji Marshall.
“He had Tigers posters and balls and jerseys.
“We didn’t go to that many games, we mainly watched it on the TV. We were always busy with his own footy, travelling around from a young age.
“But we all watched the 2005 grand final at home together, he was a Tigers man.
“It’s funny now that he’ll be up against Benji on Sunday.’’
Yet not even Benji, indeed no NRL playmaker, has made a debut in such stealth-like fashion, as Keighran did last weekend with the Warriors.
Few, if any experts or commentators, knew of the Toukley Hawks journey - or importantly, his persistence.
And not just on those winter nights in the Kia along the F3 after Harold Matthews and SG Ball training with the Bulldogs.
There were so many mornings, afternoons and nights too, that Keighran spent piloting his Steeden over the soccer goalposts on Kanwal Oval, directly opposite his home.
“He and his brother got in trouble by the soccer federation once for goal kicking when the grounds were washed out,’’ Shane smiled.
No one knew either, that the talent scout with the best black book in rugby league, Noel “Crusher” Cleal, wrote a board paper only a few years ago to the Bulldogs directors stating: “this kid will play over 100 first-grade games.”
“His left-foot kick is as good as I’ve seen in a young player,’’ Cleal said.
Last weekend, we saw why Cleal, after spotting the five-eighth at a Central Coast school carnival in 2014, offered Keighran his first rugby league contract.
Just 24 hours after his emotional father had presented him with his first-grade jersey last Friday, Keighran showed everyone why he was chosen to share the same 2015 Australian Schooboys dressing room as NRL guns Nathan Cleary, Cameron Murray and Curtis Scott.
Scoring a try, kicking six from seven conversions, making 17 tackles and missing none, Keighran took 80 minutes against the Bulldogs to pour wet cement over any question related to being Shaun Johnson’s replacement.
“He’s always said, I’m not a Shaun Johnson player. I’m a completely different player,’’ Shane said.
“Adam was always powerful and pretty big for his age, which is why he’s played backrow and centre.
“Adam is a very structured, strategy player. He’s got the smarts - he’s not a flamboyant as Shaun Johnson.
“He’s got a good running game and he’s very easy to coach. He’s got a cool head.
“He just knows what he’s got to do and he gets the job done.’’
Having captained the Bulldogs SG Ball side in 2015 and progressed to Canterbury’s NSW Cup side in 2017, Keighran moved to Penrith seeking a change in 2018.
It worked.
Playing in the halves he scored 10 tries and 81 goals in his 23 reserve grade games in 2018 for Penrith.
Then the Warriors came knocking.
Keighran sat down with his family and decided, that with his ever-supportive long-time girlfriend Taylee, they were moving to New Zealand.
“He still had another year on his contract at Penrith, but Phil Gould helped him out and said ‘chase your dream’.’’ Shane said.
“If you’ve got an opportunity to get an NRL start, go for it.
“He’s (Gould) an unbelievable fella, he’s been very supportive.’’
When Keighran turned his phone on after his confidence-boosting win last weekend, one of the first people he texted was Gould.
The 21-year-old wanted to say thank you.
“He had his dream when he was younger and he’s chased it ever since,’’ Shane said.
“We’re proud of him - but he hasn’t worked this hard for one game.
“He’s got to keep working hard, which we as we’ve seen, he will.’’
Ten of Noel “Crusher” Cleal’s favourites recruits
Jared Waerea-Hargreaves
“I was given a tape of Jared playing rugby union so I went watched him play union for Northern suburbs. I signed him even though he’d never played a game of rugby league. Two years later, he made his NRL debut with Manly.”
Jamie Lyon
“I got a phone call one day from John Harvey, a tough Manly front-rower from the late 1970s, telling me to sign this kid. He’s better than Stu Kelly, is what John said. John had seen Jamie playing for Wee Waa so I signed him to Parramatta without ever seeing him play.’’
Steve Matai
“One of my favourites. He came through the back door after Trevor Gillmeister had told us about this kid playing for Ipswich. Steve came down without any promise of a contract. We offered him a small train and trial deal to stay. He stayed for 13 seasons, where he remains fourth for most tries for the club behind Brett Stewart, Steve Menzies and Bob Fulton.
Luke Burt
“Another that brings a smile to my face. Burty was an outstanding schoolboys player, with incredible anticipation. He just knew where the gaps would be. I signed him up as a 15-year-old for the Eels. A sensational goalkicker too.
Daly Cherry-Evans
“His uncle, John-Paul Cherry had played five-eighth in Manly’s reserve grade side in the late 1970s. There were long list of Cherrys, including his dad, a small, but tough front-rower. So when my Queensland scouts sent DCE down, I knew that his breeding was strong. Still, we didn’t offer him anything. He came down on wing and a prayer and worked for everything he’s got.
Kieran Foran
“Foz was playing in the Combined Catholic Colleges tournament when I first spotted him. I then followed him playing for the North Sydney Bears Harold Matthews and SG Ball teams. He was a 16-year-old playing in the under-18s — there’s only a handful that had the dominance that he did despite playing against players two years older than him.’
Andrew Ryan
“Bobcat was invited to a pre-season trial in the lower grades at Parramatta, during the mid-90s. But the problem was, he had a car accident on the way to the trial. By the time he got there there was only 10 minutes left in the trial. I told him to come back the following week — then we signed him up. He did it the hard way Bobcat, but he just persevered and preserved.
Will Hopoate
“A Manly local junior, Will was destined to follow in the footsteps of his dad John at Manly, but few knew he’d do it so quickly. He went straight from school to playing first grade and then won a grand final and played Origin for NSW.
Matt Ballin
“Again, one of my favourites. I got a tip about Matty from my Queensland scouts. I had actually played against his dad in south Queensland. What a competitor, he put a lot of the glue in every side he played in. Just happens to be the world’s best bloke too.’’
Damien Cook
“I was with Des when I saw him playing fullback for Illawarra in reserve grade. I turned to Des and said ‘this kid is a hooker playing fullback’. It’s so pleasing to see what he’s achieving now.’’
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