Jesse Royal philosophical at end of career

Two veteran Kiwi prop forwards will play their final National Rugby League games this afternoon at Parramatta Stadium in Sydney.

There will be fanfare and plaudits for Parramatta's former Kiwi captain Nathan Cayless, concluding his 259-game, 36-test career for the Eels. But Jesse Royal will return to the dressing-sheds without any fuss, and reflect without rancour on the end of his 65-game elite career.

"I wasn't supposed to play as many games as I did," the Warriors' frontrower said. "Because of injuries, I was fortunate to be there in the right place, right time, right club: I trained hard all year and reaped the benefit at the end of it.

"I never thought I would've played 20 [career] games. To play all that I did, and meet the guys I've met along the way, the places I've visited and the friends I've made ..."

But Royal, 30, is convinced this is where his unlikely career ends. While the Warriors have qualified for the finals, he expects the returning Micheal Luck to displace him again next week.

"You don't want to see team-mates injured," he said. "What happened to `Lucky' was unfortunate. I'm just here to fill the gap. Once he gets back, I will sit on the sideline again. That's part of football and I understood that a long time ago and that's fine by me. You can't do much about it, so there is no point stressing about it: Lucky is a great player and he's a `must-have' in the side."

Once a chef in the New Zealand Army, Royal didn't turn professional until 2004, after captaining the amateur New Zealand `A' side on a tour of England. Three years of reserve grade for Penrith and Newcastle followed, meaning he was 27 before he finally played top grade for the Knights.

After two years there, he had secured a $120,000-a-year mining job – on the proviso he played local club football for Kurri Kurri – when the Warriors needed a short-notice replacement for the injured Evarn Tuimavave.

Few realise what a pay cut Royal took for the pleasure of playing professional football.

"It was more about the opportunity to play at the elite level and that was the sacrifice we made a long time ago, to come back over and work hard and enjoy my time here while we were still young," he said.

"But I am looking forward to going back to work and to watch my kids grow up, because with football you're away every fortnight."

One year in Auckland became two, and fringe first-teamer became regular selection thanks to a series of injuries suffered by Warriors' frontrowers and Royal's own consistency. It means he has surpassed by 17 games the average lifespan of an NRL footballer.

Royal was offered a captain-coaching job with Auckland club side Papakura for next year, but had long since decided he was returning to Newcastle. His youngest son, Matarae, has suffered from Burkitt's lymphoma, a form of cancer, and he says that unsettled his wife, Kylie, who returned to Australia in April to resume her former job as an accounts manager at an electrical company.

Royal is awaiting confirmation that he can return to the mines and he's ready to go.

"It has worked out well," he says, in final reflection on his career.

"I'm thankful for my time at the Warriors."

- © Fairfax NZ News