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First Grade
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http://manlydaily.com.au/article/2007/06/30/5247_sports.html Zorba
30Jun07
THE registering of Ben Kennedy on a $3 contract is an insurance policy for the Sea Eagles in the run in to the finals and beyond.
Work in the private home gym of the Kennedy family at Albany, north of Brisbane, has stepped up in recent weeks, as the big bald man raises a sweat in anger again.
Ben Kennedy is a very private man.
Few are allowed into his inner sanctum and he rarely gives an insight into his thoughts.
On September 15 last year, Ben Kennedy played the last game of his great career and the sight of him being applauded from the field by St. George Illawarra and Manly players after the Dragons beat Manly 28-0 is one which will be remembered for a long time.
Champions come and go and in two seasons Kennedy won the hearts of every true rugby league supporter - not just the Manly faithful.
Passion,courage,desire,will to win and maximum effort are traits that Kennedy took into every match.
That Manly have climbed to a lofty second place on the ladder without BK is a tribute to the team's resolve and the hard work of the coach and his support team. It is also a legacy of Kennedy's time at the club.
It is a masterstroke by coach Des Hasler to keep the Kennedy flame burning. If all goes well there is little likelihood of BK pulling on the boots again.
But what an imposing shadow to have waiting in the wings!
Injuries can hit hard at any time and illness is always a worry for a team - Travis Burns has been out for a month with pneumonia.
Hasler's ploy is a good one. He knows the fire in Kennedy's belly would be ignited by the one in a thousand chance of getting the call up. He also knows how proud the big man is. He wouldn't put himself on show in a vital match if he couldn't handle it.
I watched State of Origin I in Brisbane with Kennedy and he looks fit and fresh.
Training and getting himself fit has never been a problem.
Even then he spoke of being ready if ever the call came.
``I love the club and the players - if they ever need me I will be ready,'' he said.
Yesterday I got the same message from him.
``It's a long shot, but if injuries hit hard then I'd give it a go,'' he told me.
``But I wouldn't take the place of someone who has done the job all season.''
And I can reveal that Kennedy has played a game of football since his last game for Manly . . . for his local bottle shop team in his home suburb.
``I limped into work at 4am the next morning feeling sore and sorry for myself,'' Kennedy said.
``The game actually got me back into some regular training again.''
If Kennedy does come back for an encore it will be a marketing bonanza.
Imagine this: it's round 25 of the NRL premiership and Manly play their final home match against, wait for it . . . St.George Illawarra at Brookvale Oval. And there on the bench is one Ben Kennedy primed for a 20-minute hit out just as a pipe opener for the club's first-ever home semi-final the following weekend.
It would be sell-out and a $500,000 gate bonanza.
Dreams sometimes come true.
