'It’s special to do it every week for my hometown': Geraghty reaches game 100
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It is a little poetic that Sunshine Coast Falcons backrower Louis Geraghty will play his 100th Hostplus Cup game at this year’s Country Week, presented by Ford.
A one-club man, Geraghty actually made his debut into the competition seven years ago in Country Week, donning the Falcons jersey for the first time in the town of Roma.
“I was in the Melbourne system playing under 20s that year,” the 26-year-old said of his 2017 debut.
“It was in Round 20 when Melbourne basically said I was going to make my Cup debut. I was only 19 at that stage and funnily enough it was Country Week against Burleigh.
“I remember being extremely nervous. We were versing Burleigh and the field had a cricket pitch in the middle and holes everywhere. That’s what I remember from the debut.”
This year, Geraghty will celebrate his milestone in South Kolan, a town just 20 minutes outside of Bundaberg.
He’ll take on the Ipswich Jets, fighting to help his team stay in the top four after they moved up the ladder last week with a huge 66-8 win over the PNG Hunters.
For Geraghty, it’s going to be a special weekend and it’s a milestone made even more significant by the fact he’s played all his Cup in his home region.
“It means a lot. It’s a good opportunity to reflect back on my career and to be grateful for all the things I got to achieve,” Geraghty said.
“I’m a Sunshine Coast junior so I played all my rugby league from the age of six on the Sunshine Coast. It’s special to do it every week for my hometown.
“I’m grateful the Falcs gave me the opportunity to do it a Cup level and I do like representing my hometown and the jersey.”
An electrician away from the field, Geraghty said the toughest times of his career so far have been his battles with various injuries, particularly in 2019 when he returned home from Melbourne fresh off shoulder surgery.
In what was a record-breaking year for the Falcons under the guidance of now Northern Pride coach Eric Smith, Geraghty remembers struggling to get into the 17. He also suffered a syndesmosis injury later in the season that required surgery and sidelined him for 10 weeks.
But with the challenges, there has been plenty of good for Geraghty as well.
Not only did he get to experience an NRL system with the Melbourne Storm, but he represented Queensland under 20s and the Junior Kangaroos.
Match: Falcons v Jets
Round 19 -
home Team
Falcons
4th Position
away Team
Jets
14th Position
Venue: South Kolan Recreation Reserve, South Kolan
“There’s been a few highlights,” he said of his time in Cup.
“Being able to represent my state, Queensland, and representing Australia was definitely one of my highlights.
“But also coming into that 2017 season in the Falcons was a pretty special year. I got to play the back end of that year and to be able to play in a grand final against PNG, that is a definite highlight.”
Geraghty – who lists his two brothers as some of his biggest influences on his career, as well as former players like Dane Hogan - said there is still plenty he would like to achieve.
And the big one is going one step further than 2017 and winning the premiership.
The Falcons head into tomorrow’s match in South Kolan sitting in fourth.
But with five weeks left of the regular season, the team are also aware they are still not guaranteed to play finals at all, with a logjam through the middle of the competition ladder.
They know every two points is crucial as they build towards that grand final goal.
While his 100th milestone means a lot to Geraghty, he won’t let the occasion override what the clash against Ipswich means overall.
“I won’t let it overwhelm me,” he said.
“I’ll take it all in but the focus is on the win. We versed Ipswich a couple of weeks ago and I still have a bit of PTSD from that loss so my focus is on the back end of the year, this last run home.
“That loss against Ipswich was a bit of a wakeup call for us. We’ve put together two pretty good wins since against Mackay and PNG, so the spirits are pretty high at the moment.
“We have four games left and we’re in the top four so I want to remain in the top four. A good win would be nice for my 100th.
“There’s one thing in my career that I haven’t achieved and that’s winning a grand final. I’ve been with the Falcons for eight years and we’ve come close a few times and I think that would be the ultimate goal.
“I’d be pretty happy with my career if I was able to achieve that.”
