State of Origin 2016: Adam Reynolds reveals the origin of his deadly kicking game

ADAM Reynolds has revealed the target practice behind his lethal kicking game ahead of his State of Origin debut.

Adam Reynolds will make his Origin debut next Wednesday.

IT was the Redfern target practice that could become State of Origin folklore.

NSW halfback Adam Reynolds has revealed how he honed his remarkable kicking skills in the humble back lane behind his family home in Redfern.

Evan Lane is a small, narrow thoroughfare that runs in between Young and Morehead Streets in Waterloo. It’s where little 10-year-old Adam Reynolds would boot around his battered old footy after school.

“I grew up with a ball in hand, kicking it around the streets,” said Reynolds, who would target stop signs, telegraph poles and fence posts.

It was here the NSW No. 7 sharpened his kicking techniques which will be absolutely vital to the Blues’ chances on Wednesday night.

“I was born in Redfern so I would kick the footy around back lanes with my brother or cousins,” Reynolds said. “We used to make up little games. We would have to hit stops signs on the corners. We would try and hit street lights, the little poles on the edge of the street.

“I would aim for them, it was a little game with a few mates. There was always a bet on the line. It was a bit of fun growing up but now it has turned into a bit of reality.”

Although he grew up just 500m from Redfern Oval, where he now trains with South Sydney, it was in and around his house on the inner-city street that Reynolds perfected his craft.

“I was seen as a bit of a rat bag at times in those days. I used to play in the backyard when I was younger,” he said.

Evan Lane in Waterloo, the place where Adam Reynolds developed his kicking game.

“Whether it was in the hallway, me and my brother would put little grubbers into each other. We just loved the game of footy and always wanted to play it. Any chance we had to get the ball in hand, we took it. Either mucking around, playing a game or making up little games on the side.”

Reynolds has, arguably, the most refined and accurate kicking game in rugby league.

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“Kicking is a big part of today’s game,” Reynolds said. “Any time you can build pressure and force a team to come out of their own-end, it definitely makes it hard for them. As a player, it’s never easy coming out of your own end.

Reynolds excellent kicking game is what won him selection.

“At training I continually work on my kicking throughout sessions. I might stay back after sessions or it might be a day off when I come in and do a bit of work with our assistant coach. At the end of the day it comes down to the ‘feel’ and being confident with it.”

The Blues offer up a varied kicking game through Reynolds, James Maloney and Robbie Farah. Queensland has three master kickers in Johnathan Thurston, Cam Smith and Cooper Cronk.

“Adam would be one of the best in NRL, kicking wise,” Maloney said. “It’s a real strength to his game and having Robbie as an option out of hooker gives you three points to kick from. That makes it harder to put pressure on the kicks. It’s up to us to make sure we nail the kicking game and get it right because the ingredients are there to kick well.”

Originally published as State of Origin 2016: Adam Reynolds reveals the origin of his deadly kicking game