Big_Bad_Shark_Fan
First Grade
- Messages
- 8,279
Its 5am , a man wakes to sunshine, oh most beautiful sunshine. And while most normal folk are sleeping , a man sits up in his bed , looks at a figure next to him, yet another woman, whose name he cannot remember. Its been a usual night out for Luke. Beer , Partying and women.
But as Luke leaves out for his long day of training, leaving behind a woman to find her own way out of his bachelor pad , there is something different about today , the 2nd of August , 2005. There is a different smell in the air, a certain smell of success some would say.
On the other side of the land , another man stares into his coffee, pondering what to do. Magnifying glass out , studying the tapes of every move by a Sharks player on the weekend, trying to esculate reasons of what went wrong, as the Sharks were outplayed but not outclassed by a nervous looking Tigers outfit.
As the cold breeze flows in through the slightly ajar open, its another troubled , another cold day in the shire. He sips his bacardi in the other hand, and nestles the warm rum inside, hanging on a few seconds too long with every sip of the sweet Puerto Rican medicine. He is a man lost, a man at the end of his tether, a general at loggerheads with his troops , he can feel them slipping away ..further away.
The phone rings. Stuart ignores it & continues to drink. But as the ringing doesnt stop , and time travels further, Stuart has had enough. On the other line Its Sharks General Manager Steve Rogers and the ever mysterious man they call Murray his partners in crime. And as Steve puffs long blows from his cigar, with a slight sense of paranoia he trembles out we have a crisis strong words from a sultry man.
It was a long conversation, mind blowing to say the least. Constant arguments, witty comments and many Armidale jokes. However 58 minutes later, Raper was heard to say We must bring him back.
It was three hours later , at a nameless park , in a nameless location a car pulled out. Through the mist and the shadows, a man came out. His face was hidden by his large cowboy hat and gumboots. This cowboy figure , was Raper In search of a man , a man broken by heartbreak, toughened from the virtues of life, a former representative player perhaps, a former hero and champion.
And there he was . Kicking tee in one hand, his hair glisterning in the early morning winters sun. The man was, Luke Covell. Raper said nothing , The Warrior said nothing. A nod of appreciation and respect, said more than a thousand words, their month of war put behind them. The Warrior wiped his chin, deep tough muscular arms bulged with anticipation
It was 12.30pm. A dressing room of troubled figures sat. A man stood in front of them. He read the team for the week ahead. Luke waited anxiously for the jersey he had made famous, the number 5. Number 3, Nigel Vagana ..Number 4, Paul Mellor. The Warrior wiped his chin, his deep tough muscular arms bulged with anticipation. Silence Silence .Three minutes passed. The tension was immense. Merrit? Covell? Merrit? Covell? Mellars? Covell? Brown? Merrit? Rieck? Who would it be? Finally he spoke. Number 5 Luke Covell. A cry of relief fell over the room. Grins on players faces who had not smiled for weeks Peachey, Kimmorley, Nutley. The little general was back. This was his return , the return of one of Zeuses own prototypes. And after all 17 players were read , the whole squad went over to congratulate Luke. But while this was a joyous occasion for Luke, he saw a figure in the corner of his eyes. One Nathan Merrit, sitting in the corner, teary eyed and forgotten. And to Lukes credit , he walked over and shook the hand of the man, who he battled with for weeks, offering him a word of advice. It is this advice, which Nathan still remembers to this moment.
Luke Covells return comes at desperate times. Finally Raper put his personal issues with Luke Party Animal Covell behind him , and has brought him back. But for those who ask? Who is Luke Covell? Let me shed some light on this mystery, the warrior in question. He was a player from another era, from rounds 1-18 to be exact. A player which only comes along only every 6 years, with the talent which others dream about. A player with shivering defence, blinding attacking skills and a put it over the posts like goal kicking style which has the best even appreciating. A player with strange memories of a nervous night in Sydney 1 month ago. A day where Lukes tender heart was broken, when two immortal powers went head to head, and Covell was forced out of the team controversially, despite dominating the NRL Premiership in the early season, as the talented utility back spearheaded the Sharks to the top of the premiership ladder. This form lead him to selection in the Country Origin side, and to the surprise of being a heavy favourite for the Norm Provan Fans choice award.
One Month later, It seems like a lifetime, or at least a main era - -the kind of peak that never comes again.
History is hard to know, because of all the hired bullsh*t, but even without being sure of "history" it seems entirely reasonable to think that every now and then the energy of a whole generation comes to a head in a long fine flash, for reasons that nobody really understands at the time - and which never explain, in retrospect, what actually happened. But all that is needed to know, is that the sharks are in a hole and theres only one man who can fix it.
Luke Covell , the young boy from Goondiwindi with a dream, who was heading homeless for the streets in 05 as Salary Cap issues forced him out of the Wests Tigers, has the biggest responsibility in the world. The whole of the shire has rested their hopes of their first ever premiership on his shoulders. Will he be like Andrew Johns, Brad Fittler , Craig Gower and Luke Patten in previous years and be able to lead his side to victory? Or will he fall in the greats like Simon Woolford , Mitch Healy and Wayne Pearce to never win a premiership? Time will tell this story, and if it is a success, August 2nd, 2005, will always be remebered , as the day the Sharks turned the corner.
But as Luke leaves out for his long day of training, leaving behind a woman to find her own way out of his bachelor pad , there is something different about today , the 2nd of August , 2005. There is a different smell in the air, a certain smell of success some would say.
On the other side of the land , another man stares into his coffee, pondering what to do. Magnifying glass out , studying the tapes of every move by a Sharks player on the weekend, trying to esculate reasons of what went wrong, as the Sharks were outplayed but not outclassed by a nervous looking Tigers outfit.
As the cold breeze flows in through the slightly ajar open, its another troubled , another cold day in the shire. He sips his bacardi in the other hand, and nestles the warm rum inside, hanging on a few seconds too long with every sip of the sweet Puerto Rican medicine. He is a man lost, a man at the end of his tether, a general at loggerheads with his troops , he can feel them slipping away ..further away.
The phone rings. Stuart ignores it & continues to drink. But as the ringing doesnt stop , and time travels further, Stuart has had enough. On the other line Its Sharks General Manager Steve Rogers and the ever mysterious man they call Murray his partners in crime. And as Steve puffs long blows from his cigar, with a slight sense of paranoia he trembles out we have a crisis strong words from a sultry man.
It was a long conversation, mind blowing to say the least. Constant arguments, witty comments and many Armidale jokes. However 58 minutes later, Raper was heard to say We must bring him back.
It was three hours later , at a nameless park , in a nameless location a car pulled out. Through the mist and the shadows, a man came out. His face was hidden by his large cowboy hat and gumboots. This cowboy figure , was Raper In search of a man , a man broken by heartbreak, toughened from the virtues of life, a former representative player perhaps, a former hero and champion.
And there he was . Kicking tee in one hand, his hair glisterning in the early morning winters sun. The man was, Luke Covell. Raper said nothing , The Warrior said nothing. A nod of appreciation and respect, said more than a thousand words, their month of war put behind them. The Warrior wiped his chin, deep tough muscular arms bulged with anticipation
It was 12.30pm. A dressing room of troubled figures sat. A man stood in front of them. He read the team for the week ahead. Luke waited anxiously for the jersey he had made famous, the number 5. Number 3, Nigel Vagana ..Number 4, Paul Mellor. The Warrior wiped his chin, his deep tough muscular arms bulged with anticipation. Silence Silence .Three minutes passed. The tension was immense. Merrit? Covell? Merrit? Covell? Mellars? Covell? Brown? Merrit? Rieck? Who would it be? Finally he spoke. Number 5 Luke Covell. A cry of relief fell over the room. Grins on players faces who had not smiled for weeks Peachey, Kimmorley, Nutley. The little general was back. This was his return , the return of one of Zeuses own prototypes. And after all 17 players were read , the whole squad went over to congratulate Luke. But while this was a joyous occasion for Luke, he saw a figure in the corner of his eyes. One Nathan Merrit, sitting in the corner, teary eyed and forgotten. And to Lukes credit , he walked over and shook the hand of the man, who he battled with for weeks, offering him a word of advice. It is this advice, which Nathan still remembers to this moment.
Luke Covells return comes at desperate times. Finally Raper put his personal issues with Luke Party Animal Covell behind him , and has brought him back. But for those who ask? Who is Luke Covell? Let me shed some light on this mystery, the warrior in question. He was a player from another era, from rounds 1-18 to be exact. A player which only comes along only every 6 years, with the talent which others dream about. A player with shivering defence, blinding attacking skills and a put it over the posts like goal kicking style which has the best even appreciating. A player with strange memories of a nervous night in Sydney 1 month ago. A day where Lukes tender heart was broken, when two immortal powers went head to head, and Covell was forced out of the team controversially, despite dominating the NRL Premiership in the early season, as the talented utility back spearheaded the Sharks to the top of the premiership ladder. This form lead him to selection in the Country Origin side, and to the surprise of being a heavy favourite for the Norm Provan Fans choice award.
One Month later, It seems like a lifetime, or at least a main era - -the kind of peak that never comes again.
History is hard to know, because of all the hired bullsh*t, but even without being sure of "history" it seems entirely reasonable to think that every now and then the energy of a whole generation comes to a head in a long fine flash, for reasons that nobody really understands at the time - and which never explain, in retrospect, what actually happened. But all that is needed to know, is that the sharks are in a hole and theres only one man who can fix it.
Luke Covell , the young boy from Goondiwindi with a dream, who was heading homeless for the streets in 05 as Salary Cap issues forced him out of the Wests Tigers, has the biggest responsibility in the world. The whole of the shire has rested their hopes of their first ever premiership on his shoulders. Will he be like Andrew Johns, Brad Fittler , Craig Gower and Luke Patten in previous years and be able to lead his side to victory? Or will he fall in the greats like Simon Woolford , Mitch Healy and Wayne Pearce to never win a premiership? Time will tell this story, and if it is a success, August 2nd, 2005, will always be remebered , as the day the Sharks turned the corner.
