Cronulla star Luke Lewis says he can shoulder responsibility of Origin after injury
Cronulla star Luke Lewis said the sickening shoulder injury that ended his World Cup tour had not dampened his desire to play representative football again after revealing he wanted to use his round-four return as a stepping stone towards selection in the NSW Origin team.
The 30-year-old needed a shoulder reconstruction after he crashed into a metal pole attached to World Cup signage when he tried to score a try off a Robbie Farah kick during Australia's 34-2 victory over Fiji in England. He was knocked unconscious and it took 20 excruciating minutes for his shoulder to be set back into place.
However, Lewis said that playing a role in Australia's reclaiming of the World Cup from New Zealand was more than worth the pain and frustration of counting down the days until he could start full training again.
''I'm a big believer in if ever you're given the opportunity to represent your state or country - it doesn't matter how you're feeling, how you're body is feeling - you take it,'' Lewis said. ''Every time I'm in an Australian or Origin team camp, I learn so much. It's the time I learn the most. You also don't know when your next green and gold jumper or whether you'll get the chance to represent Australia or NSW again. That's why I believe if you get your opportunity, you take it.
Advertisement
''I'm very passionate about it. If I couldn't walk because of an injury and I was picked for a rep team, I would find a way to play.''
Lewis said he hoped to push a case for selection in the NSW team despite his late start to the season. However, his first priority was to start training with his teammates as quickly as possible.
''I'm travelling all right,'' he said. ''I started running this week, which is good It's slowly coming along, it's just taking its time.
''If you try and speed the recovery up, you can make it worse it's just one of those things where you need to be patient. It's more frustrating than anything else right now because you see all the boys out on the field, ball in hand, doing their stuff and you're doing rehab or boring running.''
Lewis said he expected to be back in action by round four, when the Sharks travel to Newcastle to take on the Knights.
''It's a six-month recovery,'' he said. ''We're coming into the ninth week now. It's meant to be another four months but I'm hoping to be back. My goal is round four, anything earlier is a bonus. I'm on track at the moment but there's a few other little things I need to do to ensure it all goes smoothly and then it's back on the park.''
Lewis was adamant Cronulla - a club still chasing an elusive first premiership - could improve on last year's finals appearance. However, he said ''luck'' would play a role.
''We can improve,'' he said. ''We took a while to get going last year when we hit our straps around rounds six or seven.
''We've all played a bit more football together now and we know one another's game. I'm a big believer we'll need a few things go our way, though. We need our halves on board and, if we can keep our team on the park consistently, we'll go really well.'
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...fter-injury-20140118-311i7.html#ixzz2qti3qjLm
Cronulla star Luke Lewis said the sickening shoulder injury that ended his World Cup tour had not dampened his desire to play representative football again after revealing he wanted to use his round-four return as a stepping stone towards selection in the NSW Origin team.
The 30-year-old needed a shoulder reconstruction after he crashed into a metal pole attached to World Cup signage when he tried to score a try off a Robbie Farah kick during Australia's 34-2 victory over Fiji in England. He was knocked unconscious and it took 20 excruciating minutes for his shoulder to be set back into place.
However, Lewis said that playing a role in Australia's reclaiming of the World Cup from New Zealand was more than worth the pain and frustration of counting down the days until he could start full training again.
Advertisement
''I'm very passionate about it. If I couldn't walk because of an injury and I was picked for a rep team, I would find a way to play.''
Lewis said he hoped to push a case for selection in the NSW team despite his late start to the season. However, his first priority was to start training with his teammates as quickly as possible.
''I'm travelling all right,'' he said. ''I started running this week, which is good It's slowly coming along, it's just taking its time.
''If you try and speed the recovery up, you can make it worse it's just one of those things where you need to be patient. It's more frustrating than anything else right now because you see all the boys out on the field, ball in hand, doing their stuff and you're doing rehab or boring running.''
Lewis said he expected to be back in action by round four, when the Sharks travel to Newcastle to take on the Knights.
''It's a six-month recovery,'' he said. ''We're coming into the ninth week now. It's meant to be another four months but I'm hoping to be back. My goal is round four, anything earlier is a bonus. I'm on track at the moment but there's a few other little things I need to do to ensure it all goes smoothly and then it's back on the park.''
Lewis was adamant Cronulla - a club still chasing an elusive first premiership - could improve on last year's finals appearance. However, he said ''luck'' would play a role.
''We can improve,'' he said. ''We took a while to get going last year when we hit our straps around rounds six or seven.
''We've all played a bit more football together now and we know one another's game. I'm a big believer we'll need a few things go our way, though. We need our halves on board and, if we can keep our team on the park consistently, we'll go really well.'
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...fter-injury-20140118-311i7.html#ixzz2qti3qjLm
