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By Iain Payten
BEN Kennedy followed up last weekend's win over Souths with a rare all-nighter.
Sounds interesting but as the Manly captain will tell, these small hours of Sunday morning couldn't have been further from your garden-variety Empire bender.
After a bruising clash with the Bunnies that saw Kennedy suffer several bad corks as well as an already strained groin, the veteran forward had a date with leg-numbing icepacks and mind-numbing infomercials.
As part of his battle to retire at the end of the season having led Manly deep into to finals footy, Kennedy stayed up all night icing and stretching his battered body.
"The physio said the first 48 hours are crucial," Kennedy said. "These weeks coming up are for Manly are massive so, yeah, I stayed up all night icing everything and stretching. You have to keep your legs bent for a certain stretch, for recovery. I sat up on the lounge and watching telly.
"I should be running by Friday."
The toughness of Kennedy is unmatched in the NRL, and while the on-field ironman is well known, it's this unflinching dedication that insiders point to as evidence the 32-year-old is a breed apart.
Due to cross the finish line of his career at the end of this season, Kennedy is fighting to ensure his petrol gauge hits empty only after the race is run. Nights like last Saturday don't make it easy.
"I copped a good cork just above the knee on my first hit up and it hurt a fair bit, and then I just kept get hit on the same spot," Kennedy tells.
Bear in mind this is the sort of "knock" that puts you and me on crutches for a week.
"Then I copped a new one in exactly the same spot on the other leg, and it got hit a couple of times as well," Kennedy recalls.
Headlines after the match spelt out Manly's worry at seeing their skipper hobble off five minutes before fulltime: Kennedy injured, could miss matches.
A week on and while the diagnosis is the same, the worry is not. Kennedy may be injured, but he will not be missing.
The inspirational Sea Eagle will, as usual, kit up on Sunday afternoon to wage war on Penrith in what looms as a crucial clash for Manly's playoff hopes.
Recuperation can wait.
"There's no way that I wouldn't play," Kennedy says. "I pull up a bit sore but I'm not the oldest bloke running around."
The sheer mileage of a career like Kennedy's, however, is taking its toll. Some players pace themselves through a season and a career, conserving energy, resting an injury a week more than needed.
Kennedy operates at a fiercer pace, his relentless inner drive unable to let him ease up. While he is only 32, each year has been filled to the brim.
"I still feel like I can play the game at a high standard but it just gets harder and harder getting there, harder with training and contact work, harder and harder mentally," Kennedy says. "I never wanted to be one of those guys who people say played a season too far. Actually, I don't care what other people think. But I do want to know I finished playing good football."
Retirement is a word he's surprisingly comfortable with. At least for now.
"Football has given me so much. It's a lot of work and pressure but it's a pretty good life," he says.
"I've had a good run."
After stints at Canberra and then a premiership win at Newcastle, Kennedy is humbled by the acceptance he's received at Manly. He baulks at talk his influence alone has re-vitalised Manly from also-rans to finals contenders, but does admit his pride in his "small role".
"People said I wouldn't be good value for Manly but the club showed faith in me and gave me some ownership. With the hard work of the coaches and admin as well, a club coming second-last has turned into finalists in a couple of years," he says.
Hence the all-nighter of ice packs and bad TV. Kennedy wants to see this Manly team dig deep into its potential and pull out a finals run.
"Last year I'd think: "OK, we're building up to something" but this is it now. There are some great teams out there but we have a chance to do something."
BEN Kennedy followed up last weekend's win over Souths with a rare all-nighter.
Sounds interesting but as the Manly captain will tell, these small hours of Sunday morning couldn't have been further from your garden-variety Empire bender.
After a bruising clash with the Bunnies that saw Kennedy suffer several bad corks as well as an already strained groin, the veteran forward had a date with leg-numbing icepacks and mind-numbing infomercials.
As part of his battle to retire at the end of the season having led Manly deep into to finals footy, Kennedy stayed up all night icing and stretching his battered body.
"The physio said the first 48 hours are crucial," Kennedy said. "These weeks coming up are for Manly are massive so, yeah, I stayed up all night icing everything and stretching. You have to keep your legs bent for a certain stretch, for recovery. I sat up on the lounge and watching telly.
"I should be running by Friday."
The toughness of Kennedy is unmatched in the NRL, and while the on-field ironman is well known, it's this unflinching dedication that insiders point to as evidence the 32-year-old is a breed apart.
Due to cross the finish line of his career at the end of this season, Kennedy is fighting to ensure his petrol gauge hits empty only after the race is run. Nights like last Saturday don't make it easy.
"I copped a good cork just above the knee on my first hit up and it hurt a fair bit, and then I just kept get hit on the same spot," Kennedy tells.
Bear in mind this is the sort of "knock" that puts you and me on crutches for a week.
"Then I copped a new one in exactly the same spot on the other leg, and it got hit a couple of times as well," Kennedy recalls.
Headlines after the match spelt out Manly's worry at seeing their skipper hobble off five minutes before fulltime: Kennedy injured, could miss matches.
A week on and while the diagnosis is the same, the worry is not. Kennedy may be injured, but he will not be missing.
The inspirational Sea Eagle will, as usual, kit up on Sunday afternoon to wage war on Penrith in what looms as a crucial clash for Manly's playoff hopes.
Recuperation can wait.
"There's no way that I wouldn't play," Kennedy says. "I pull up a bit sore but I'm not the oldest bloke running around."
The sheer mileage of a career like Kennedy's, however, is taking its toll. Some players pace themselves through a season and a career, conserving energy, resting an injury a week more than needed.
Kennedy operates at a fiercer pace, his relentless inner drive unable to let him ease up. While he is only 32, each year has been filled to the brim.
"I still feel like I can play the game at a high standard but it just gets harder and harder getting there, harder with training and contact work, harder and harder mentally," Kennedy says. "I never wanted to be one of those guys who people say played a season too far. Actually, I don't care what other people think. But I do want to know I finished playing good football."
Retirement is a word he's surprisingly comfortable with. At least for now.
"Football has given me so much. It's a lot of work and pressure but it's a pretty good life," he says.
"I've had a good run."
After stints at Canberra and then a premiership win at Newcastle, Kennedy is humbled by the acceptance he's received at Manly. He baulks at talk his influence alone has re-vitalised Manly from also-rans to finals contenders, but does admit his pride in his "small role".
"People said I wouldn't be good value for Manly but the club showed faith in me and gave me some ownership. With the hard work of the coaches and admin as well, a club coming second-last has turned into finalists in a couple of years," he says.
Hence the all-nighter of ice packs and bad TV. Kennedy wants to see this Manly team dig deep into its potential and pull out a finals run.
"Last year I'd think: "OK, we're building up to something" but this is it now. There are some great teams out there but we have a chance to do something."
