Livewire Luke Says You'll Never Lure Him From the Bunnies
Hot on the heels of three impressive wins on the trot, Souths have received a massive boost with dynamic hooker Issac Luke pledging his allegiance to the club for the rest of his career.
Just two years after the Kiwi no.9 was considering walking out on Souths because of a lack of game time under Jason Taylor, the 22 year old tells RLW he can't imagine playing for any other club.
Although he is signed to the Rabbitohs until the end of 2011, Luke says rival clubs should not bother applying for his services no matter how much money they have to splash around.
"I'm going to be at this club forever," Luke says. "This is the club that gave me my shot and the club that has stuck with me and believed in me and I can never see myself playing for another club than the Rabbitohs."
"It's not about the cash for me and I'm not really interested in even knowing what's out there because I just consider the Rabbitohs my home and my family's home and I can't see that ever changing."
"If I keep learning and trying to improve on parts of my game that I know need improving, I know the Rabbitohs will always be there to look after me like they have done so far."
"The club is like my family, all the boys are like my brothers, and my family itself couldn't be happier with how they are looked after here at Souths."
"I'm keen to hang around and help the club rebuild and I know we have the makings there to be one of the best teams in the competition and do something really special with all the boys. I'm only 22, but like I saidm there's no way I can see myself ever leaving Souths."
Luke, who is sure to give the Kangaroos plenty to think about in next month's test in Melbourne, credits his forwards for "making me look good".
And he reserves special praise for new coach John Lang as well.
"When John Lang became coach, he asked what I wanted to do and I told him I wanted to play the entire game and he just said, 'OK, we'll give it a shot and see how you go'," Luke says.
"Knowing Langy had that sort of confidence in me has really helped as well and going out playing behind some of the forwards we have at the club now certainly makes my job a lot easier out there."
"Having said that, I still think there's a lot of improvement left in my game and I know there's a lot of people at the club who can help me out and get better every week."
Lang, himself a former Test hooker, says Luke's form has been one of the keys to the Bunnies' turnaround.
"He's played well for us every week and I put it down to experience really," Lang says.
"I thought he played a lot better for the Kiwis at the end of last season than he did the year before and I think the extra time he's getting on the field means he doesn't have to rush things. He's just been terrific for us."
Source: Rugby League Week 14th April 2010
