the weight of expectation was sitting comfortably numb on lukes shoulders, as he sat in the changeroom moments before kickoff, a million things racing through his mind at once knowing that people were calling for his sacking. pressure boiling like a red hot iron, tension being able to be cut with a knife, Luke covell was under the same pressure one greg bird was under just two weeks ago. what must of been going through his mind im not sure "this is my last chance, the team needs me" , "just believe in yourself" , are just the possibiilities.
young luke knew that it was no coincidence where his lapse in form a major reason in the sharks plummet down the ladder in the last month. the team that rescued luke as a young man, headed for the streets homeless in 04, as salary cap issues forced a wanted luke covell out of the wests tigers. marking up against the defending minor premiers, the chance to repay his club again was a major issue on his mind. Going into the game covell knew that this was his last chance , he had to redeem himself, for the sharks, for the plight, for the fans, for sanity and for most importantly - Luke Covell , 2004 NSW origin rep and 2005 country origin rep.
and as the crowd roared, the air of expectation looming in the night, deafened only by the hostile crowd of the sfs, covell ran out onto the field , his place of destruction, his home of beckoning - his cauldron
and the rest is history. Luke returned to the form which saw him one of the most talked about men in league. while he wasnt back to his destructive best, the signs were back, the enthusiam was there, the passion was there, the will to fight to the end was there. and at the end of the day, the sharks won, luke covell won, and rugby league won. last week andrew johns returned , and now luke covell did the same.
rugby league may have been rocked by the heartache of the last few years. Rape allegations, salary cap breaches, on and off field incidents. but while the stories and tails of the past week with players like luke covell and matt king happen, rugby league is in a very safe and stable place.
welcome back luke, tonight rugby league is the winner.
