Rabbitohs’ fans look up to inspirational Inglis

Is there another NRL club that means so much to so many people? Probably not.

The Greg Inglis mural on the corner of Cleveland and Woodburn streets in Redfern. Photo: Supplied

You pull up the car on the corner of Cleveland and Woodburn streets, walk across the nine carparking spaces, kick away the broken glass at your feet, blank out the rumbling traffic, stare at the word DEADLY spray-painted to the left and then study the giant mural of Greg Inglis that dominates the urban landscape from the side of a two-storey building.

His hair is parted from right to left. A mole is below his right eye. He’s wearing a mouthguard. The mouth is wide open in a roar. There’s a three-day growth to make Cold Chisel proud. His eyes are fierce, driven. The cardinal and myrtle of the South Sydney Rabbitohs glows in contrast to the colourless surroundings.

Keep driving. Down Woodburn St. A left turn on to Eveleigh St. Past Tony Mundine’s old gymnasium. The empty lot owned by the Aboriginal Housing Company that has no houses on it. The indigenous flag in the background.

A left turn at Redfern railway station. The pub is advertising. FREE LOVE NOT FREE BEER. A poor old bugger with the arse hanging out the back of his pants is asking for money from drivers at the red light. He’s wearing a retro, faded, dishevelled South Sydney jersey. You give him a dollar.

A million questions are on your tongue. How’d you get here, old mate? What happened? Who’s looking out for you? All you end up saying is, “Up the Bunnies, eh?” He grabs his jersey above the chest. He walks to the next car. In the rear view mirror, I can see the driver telling him to piss off.

Greg Inglis laughs during Rabbitohs training at Redfern Oval yesterday. Photo: Phil Hillyard

Is there another NRL club that means so much to so many people? Probably not. It has its high-flyers in the crowd. And it has its desperates.

The captain of the club, and therefore a leader of these people, is Inglis. Now he’s standing behind the dressing sheds at Redfern Oval. You take a good look at his face. See if the mural is accurate. It is. You tell him the story about the bloke at the traffic light.

“Anywhere you go around here, everywhere you walk around Redfern, you get to see what a part of people’s lives the club is,” Inglis tells The Australian.

“It’s the community, in all walks of life. It’s exceptional. It makes it great to be part of this club. The engagement we have with people as a club and as players and as a team and as a squad in this area and surrounding areas, it’s heartwarming.

“Some people around here are doing well for themselves. Some are not. There’s a lot of good people here. There’s a Woolworths across the road here. Quite often you see people sitting around hoping for a couple of dollars.

“I’ve seen people walk out of Woolworths with food and sandwiches and bottles of water and give them away out of the goodness of their own hearts.

“You see a lot of hardship around here, but you also see a lot of kindness from people in the area. That’s what makes it so beautiful. You look at the history of Redfern, it’s been the same since day one. Sure, there’s disagreements and arguments but it really is a unique place, and I love it. “

Inglis’s mural has been defaced once. It was during this year’s State of Origin series, when someone painted “Kempsey is not in Queensland” on it. Asked what he thinks of the artwork, what it really means, he says, “It reinforces to you that you have an important place in the community. You’re a leader and you’ve got to lead by example. Be a good role model. In the eyes of this community, you’re a hero if you play for South Sydney. You have to act in the right way.”

Inglis is carrying a rib injury. He downplays it, saying one of his ribs may be sore but he has others that are fine. He expects Dragons heavy hitters Tariq Sims and Tyson Frizell to try to rattle his cage knowing he’s playing hurt.

“If they do, they do,” he says. “I’ve had it on ice the last two days. Trained good today. I’ve buried the cartilage area. I didn’t do full-on contact today but the movement was fine. You put your body on the line in rugby league, that’s why I love it.”

Inglis still has a sore shoulder from the chicken wing tackle from the Storm’s Jesse Bromwich that the match review committee decided was not a chicken wing tackle. “Whatever they deem is a chicken wing and what’s not, that’s entirely up to them,” Inglis says. “They didn’t charge it. I’ll just move on and play football. It still is pretty sore.”

You drive back out of Redfern.

The only thing more impressive than the mural is the man himself. He’s had quite the year. A return from a knee reconstruction. Mental health issues. Origin captaincy. Origin defeat. More injuries and absences. “I didn’t know where we’d go as a club this year,” he says. “I didn’t know where I’d go as a player when the season started. I’d been out for a whole 12 months. Now I’m about to play a semi-final and the club has the opportunity to go all the way.

“This club has done everything to make me feel at home and part of the family. I’m blown away by the mural. People were telling me about it and I was like, ‘What are you talking about?’ To be seen like that, as a leader of the community — it touches my heart.”