The Eagle Eye
Reserve Grader
Nelson rugby league prodigy Marvin Curry a step closer to realising his NRL dream
- 2
- Curry heads to Sydney to join Sea Eagles
* Sea Eagles swoop on Nelson college player
The former Nelson College First XV rugby player, who was born in Samoa, was signed by the Sea Eagles on a two-year contract last year, giving him an opportunity to play for their under-18 side in the SG Ball competition.
That dream to play in the NRL became that much closer to reality.
However, it has been an injury disrupted stint in Australia. Curry tore his anterior cruciate ligament the early rounds of the SG Ball competition.
Was his dream over before it began, he wondered.
"It was one of the opening rounds. It was really, really early. I thought it was nothing but they said I needed surgery on it. I had blown up. It was pretty tough," he said.
But it wasn't over. Far from it in fact.
The club "was really good to me," Curry said. Not only did they nurse him through the recovery period, once he was able to return to training he was invited to join the under-20 side that competes in the National Youth Competition (NYC) along with "five or six other boys."
"They told me to go start training and do my rehab with the 20s. So I've basically just been training with them and the pre-season is coming up so I'm really looking forward to it.
"I'm pretty much fully back into training, there's just some certain movements I can't do."
Curry was in Nelson visiting family this week but is due to fly back to Australia on Sunday.
With one year left on his contract he knows it's make or break in 2017, but the fact he will play in the NYC has given the fullback renewed hope that his NRL dream can still be achieved.
"One of the coaches wants me to train and train. If my leg is fine after the pre-season then I'll probably start playing.
"My target next season is just to play really good and impress the Manly staff with my on and off the field attitude. I just want to have a good season and play the best I can."
If he can make his mark in the NYC, Curry will be knocking on the door of the NRL. He said he has already witnessed first hand just how quickly a player can get the call-up.
"One week they can just call you up and say 'someone is injured in the first grade, do you want to play?'
"So I just have to train hard and play hard."
Curry said it was a "big move" to leave his family and friends in Nelson but he's adjusted to the new lifestyle.
"Now I like it. Everything you do over there you feel like you're moving forward.
"On a normal day I work at 5am and after work I travel to Manly with a few of the boys for training. We finish about 8pm and then go back home. It's about an half an a half drive. That's the daily routine."
- Stuff
