Luke Keary

Luke Keary (born 3 February 1992) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a five-eighth for the Sydney Roosters in the NRL.

Luke Keary
Personal information
Born (1992-02-03) 3 February 1992
Ipswich, Queensland, Australia
Height179 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight85 kg (13 st 5 lb)
Playing information
PositionFive-eighth, Halfback
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2013–16 South Sydney 63 12 0 0 48
2017– Sydney Roosters 91 25 0 4 100
Total 154 37 0 4 148
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2018 Australia 2 0 0 0 0
2020 New South Wales 1 0 0 0 0
As of 7 October 2019
Source: [1]

Keary previously played as a five-eighth and halfback for the South Sydney Rabbitohs, with whom he won the 2014 NRL Premiership. Keary again won the premiership and Clive Churchill medal in the 2018 Grand Final for the Sydney Roosters.

Early career

Keary was born in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia, and is of Irish descent[2] and was raised in the suburb of Raceview and attended St. Mary's Primary School in Ipswich.

He played junior rugby league for Ipswich Brothers. At age 10, Keary moved to Sydney with his family.[3] In Sydney, Keary played junior rugby league for the Kellyville Bushrangers and later Hills District Bulls and attended Oakhill College in Castle Hill.[4] In 2010, Keary represented the Australian Schoolboys rugby union team.[5] That same year he represented the New South Wales Combined Independent Schools (NSWCIS) rugby league team at the Under 18's National Championships.[6][7] In 2011, Keary returned to Queensland, moving to the Gold Coast where he attended Griffith University and played a season with the Burleigh Bears, playing for their FOGS Colts and Queensland Cup teams.[4] At the end of the year he won Burleigh's FOGS Colts Best Back Award.[8] Growing up, Keary supported the Brisbane Broncos, idolising Allan Langer who also hails from Ipswich, and stated his ambitions of one day representing them before signing with the South Sydney Rabbitohs ahead of the 2012 NRL season.[9] Keary played for the Rabbitohs' NYC team in 2012, captaining the team and playing 24 games, in which he scored 20 tries.[10] At the end of season, he was named on the bench in the 2012 NYC Team of the Year and won South Sydney's NYC Best and Fairest award.[11]

Keary playing for the North Sydney Bears in 2012

Playing career

2013

In January 2013, Keary was a member of the Queensland Junior Emerging Origin squad.[12] In Round 12 of the 2013 NRL season, Keary made his NRL debut for the South Sydney Rabbitohs against the Newcastle Knights off the interchange bench in the Rabbitohs 25-18 win at ANZ Stadium.[13] In Round 20 against the Gold Coast Titans, Keary scored his first and second tries NRL career tries off the interchange bench in the Rabbitohs 32-4 win at Cbus Super Stadium.[14] On August 22, 2013, Keary extended his contract with the Rabbitohs to the end of the 2015 season.[15] Keary finished his debut year in the NRL with him playing in 10 matches and scoring 2 tries for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the 2013 NRL season.

2014

In February, Keary was selected for the Rabbitohs inaugural 2014 Auckland Nines squad. Keary was preparing his breakout year but it was ruined early due to a torn pectoral muscle injury in the Nines.[16][17] Keary made his return to the Rabbitohs team in Round 17 against the Titans, scoring a try in the Rabbitohs 14-10 shock loss.[18] On 5 October, in the 2014 NRL Grand Final against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Keary played at five-eighth in the 30-6 victory.[19][20] Keary finished the season with 3 tries from 12 matches.

2015

On 27 January, Keary re-signed with the Rabbitohs on a 1-year contract.[21] On 23 February, he played for the Rabbitohs in the 2015 World Club Challenge match against 2014 Super League Grand Final premiers St. Helens, playing at five-eighth and scoring a try in the Rabbitohs' 39-0 win at Langtree Park.[22] In April, he was selected for the New South Wales City team for the annual City vs Country Origin match, but withdrew due to a foot injury.[23] He finished off the 2015 season having played in 24 matches and scoring 4 tries for the Rabbitohs.[24]

2016

In January, Keary was involved in a confrontation with actor and Rabbitohs club co-owner Russell Crowe in a pre-season bonding session at Crowe’s farm in Nana Glen, New South Wales. It was revealed that Keary was furious after Crowe berated him, Cameron McInnes and some of the younger players. When Keary defended them, Crowe told him that he was not worth the money of his contract, sending Keary into a rage, first at Crowe and then at senior Rabbitohs player Sam Burgess for not sticking up for the younger players. Keary was ordered by Crowe to leave the property, which he did, catching a taxi at about 3:00am.[25][26]

At the start of the year, Keary, who was off contract at season’s end, was linked to sign with the Sydney Roosters, the St George Illawarra Dragons who offered him a contract worth $1.2 million over 3-years, or even a shift to Rugby Union for 2017.[27][28] On 21 June, Keary announced that he signed a 2-year contract with the Roosters starting in 2017.[29][30] In Round 21 against the Canberra Raiders, Keary would play his last match for the Rabbitohs after he suffered a season ending hamstring injury in the woeful 54-4 loss at ANZ Stadium.[31] Keary finished his last season with the Rabbitohs with him playing in 17 matches and scoring 3 tries in the 2016 NRL season.

2017

In Round 1 of the 2017 NRL season, Keary made his club debut for Roosters against the Gold Coast Titans, having a successful match by scoring 2 tries in the 32-18 win at Cbus Super Stadium.[32] Keary made 26 appearances for Eastern Suburbs and was part of the side which made it all the way to the preliminary final before suffering a shock 16-29 defeat by a depleted North Queensland Cowboys team.[33][34]

Luke Keary married high school sweetheart Amy Bugeja on 14 October 2017.

2018

In 2018, Keary suffered a broken jaw at pre season training and missed over a month of training and trial games.[35]

Keary received the Clive Churchill medal in the 2018 Grand Final where his team the Roosters beat the Melbourne Storm 21-6.

He capped a stellar season by earning selection in the Australian Kangaroos team as starting five-eighth for Test matches against New Zealand and Tonga.[36]

2019

Keary started the 2019 NRL season in good form as the club won 7 of their first 9 games. Keary's good form meant that he was in line to be selected for New South Wales in the 2019 State of Origin series. In Round 11 against Newcastle, Keary was taken from the field with concussion and was subsequently ruled out for 6 weeks.[37]

On August 15, Keary was spoken about by Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold comparing him to Darius Boyd saying “I had a look through the competition last weekend, there is an Australian No.6 (Keary) playing for a team in Sydney who only made four metres last week and missed five tackles, Not one thing was said in the media about that. His team won and our team won. For whatever reason because Darius only had one run, he has been crucified all week from what I understand. I just think everyone needs to back off on Darius". Keary spoke to the media in response saying “I don’t really care to be honest. It’s a little bit odd. I don’t know him, I’ve never spoke to him. I don’t care what he says. I don’t care what he thinks".[38]

Keary played at five-eighth for the Sydney Roosters in the 2019 NRL Grand Final in which the club won their second consecutive premiership defeating Canberra 14-8 in the decider. It was Keary's third premiership victory as a player.[39]

On 7 October, Keary was named for the Australian side for the upcoming Oceania Cup fixtures.

2020

In round 9 of the 2020 NRL season, Keary scored two tries as the Sydney Roosters defeated North Queensland 42-16 at Queensland Country Bank Stadium.[40] In August 2020, Keary extended his contract with the Sydney Roosters until the end of the 2024 season. In round 18 against Newcastle, he scored two tries as the Sydney Roosters won the match 42-12 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.[41]

The following week, he scored a further two tries in the club's 34-18 victory over Cronulla-Sutherland.[42]

Representative career

Keary's State of Origin eligibility was a point of discussion within the media due to his being born and raised, for the first 10 years of his life, in Ipswich, Queensland. He spent the following eight years in Sydney, before returning to Queensland for another two years. In 2014, Keary wrote to then NRL CEO Dave Smith requesting that he be considered a Queenslander for future representative opportunities.[43] The request was denied and the 2012 eligibility rules were upheld.

Keary made his international debut for Australia in 2018 against New Zealand.[44] In 2020 he was selected to make his State of Origin debut for New South Wales in Game I.[45]

Following New South Wales upset loss in Game 1 of the 2020 State of Origin series against Queensland, Keary was cut from the New South Wales squad for Game 2 and was not selected for Game 3 as the blues suffered a shock 2-1 series defeat.[46]

Statistics

NRL
Statistics are correct to the end of the 2019 season [1]
† Denotes seasons in which Keary won an NRL Premiership
Season Team Matches T G GK % F/G Pts W L D W-L %
2013 South Sydney 1020—0873070.00
2014† South Sydney 1230—01293075.00
2015 South Sydney 2440—0161311054.17
2016 South Sydney 1730—012413023.53
2017 Sydney Roosters 2680—133188069.23
2018† Sydney Roosters 2350—121176073.91
2019† Sydney Roosters 22 2 0 — 36 17 7 0
Career totals 134 27 0 — 2 138 84 51 0 60.97

References
  1. "Luke Keary - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  2. "Luke Keary in line for World Cup gig with Ireland". Yahoo. 6 April 2017. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  3. "Rabbitohs Half Luke Keary is the Mouse That Roared As South Sydney Brace for Big Test". Couriermail.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  4. "The Oakhill Drive" (PDF). Oakhill.nsw.edu.au. May 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  5. "RugbyNet - Australian Schools Rugby Union". Austschools.rugbynet.com.au. Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  6. "2010 - 18 Years Burleigh Heads - Australian Secondary Schools Rugby League - FOX SPORTS PULSE". Sportingpulse.com. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  7. "NSWCIS Rugby League News and heaps of stuff". Ourfootyteam.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. https://web.archive.org/web/20151224104034/http://rleague.com/players/Luke-Keary_3604/Matches/. Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2016. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  11. "Toyota Cup Team of the Year". NRL.com. 21 August 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  12. "McQueen and Keary Named in Emerging Maroons Squads - The Front Row Forum :: Rugby League". Forums.leagueunlimited.com. 14 December 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  13. "Rabbitohs Beat Knights 25-18 in NRL Round 12". Dailytelegraph.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  14. "Rabbitohs Blow Titans Away to Get NRL Premiership Back on Track". Foxsports.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  15. "Rabbitohs Re-Sign Young Gun Luke Leary Until End of 2015". Dailytelegraph.com.au. 21 August 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  16. "Squads For Auckland Nines". Rugby League Week. 14 February 2014. Archived from the original on 15 January 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  17. "Rabbitoh Luke Leary to Miss Bulk of 2014 NRL Season Following Surgery". Foxsports.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  18. "Winning Ugly Just Fine for Desperate Titans As They Beat South Sydney". The Australian. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  19. "Rabbitohs Win 2014 NRL Grand Final". Dailytelegraph.com.au. 5 October 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  20. "Rabbitohs Grand Final Player Ratings". NRL.com. 5 October 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  21. Brad Walter (27 January 2015). "South Sydney Rabbitohs re-sign Adam Reynolds and Luke Keary". Smh.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  22. "Rabbitohs Beat Knights 25-18 in NRL Round 12". Dailytelegraph.com.au. 22 February 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  23. "South Sydney Quite on Injury That Ruled Luke Keary Out of City of Origin Side". Couriermail.com.au. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  24. "Custom Match List". Rugby League Project. 23 October 2015. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  25. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/what-russell-crowe-really-said-to-luke-keary-to-send-him-storming-out-of-rabbitohs-team-bonding-session/news-story/89a16270d708e3c4538d389396c46a8b
  26. Press, Australian Associated (20 January 2016). "South Sydney owner Russell Crowe apologises for Luke Keary tirade". the Guardian. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  27. "NRL 2016: Rabbitohs star Luke Keary considers rugby union". 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  28. Chammas, Michael (10 June 2016). "St George Illawarra Dragons weigh up Luke Keary's $1.2 million contract request". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  29. "How Robbo snared Keary from under Dragons". 20 June 2016.
  30. "South Sydney star Luke Keary signs with Sydney Roosters until 2018". 21 June 2016. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  31. "Raiders in top three after 54-4 rout of Rabbitohs". 31 July 2016. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  32. "NRL scores: Luke Keary, Mitchell Pearce lead Roosters win over Titans". 4 March 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  33. Perry, Sam; Perry, Sam (23 September 2017). "Cowboys beat Roosters in NRL preliminary final - as it happened". Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via www.theguardian.com. Missing |author2= (help)
  34. Ferguson, Shawn Dollin and Andrew. "Custom Match List - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  35. "NRL 2018: Roosters star Luke Keary broken jaw at pre-season training". 31 January 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  36. https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/10/09/new-zealand-v-australia-team-lists-mens-womens-junior-sides/
  37. "Luke Keary to miss up to six weeks leaving Sydney Roosters short of halves options". Fox Sports.
  38. "Roosters star Luke Keary hits back at Anthony Seibold's bizarre outburst about his form". Fox Sports.
  39. "Sydney Roosters beat Canberra Raiders to win NRL Grand Final". BBC.
  40. "Ikuvalu scores five as roosters rout north queensland". www.nrl.com.
  41. "Tupou scores 100th NRL try as Roosters end Knights' top-four hopes". uk.sports.yahoo.com.
  42. "Sydney Roosters defeat Sharks ahead of NRL finals, Shaun Johnson suffers serious injury". www.abc.net.au.
  43. "Queensland Rugby League chairman backs Mal Meninga's call for State of Origin eligibility review". ABC.
  44. "Keary shakes off concussion to leave Tongans with headache". Sydney Morning Herald.
  45. "'I'm very comfortable with NSW': Keary laughs off Maroons claim". Sydney Morning Herald.
  46. "State of Origin 2020 game 3: Qld Maroons beat NSW Blues – as it happened". www.theguardian.com.
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