Hard work personifies Illawarra Steelers prop Mackenzie Lear, who spent her early sporting years swimming up and down the black line at her local pool.
Despite a burgeoning career in the water, representing NSW, Lear always had her heart set on playing rugby league.
“I grew up as a swimmer, and after years of begging Mum and Dad to let me play tackle footy, they finally let me.
“I started with the Shellharbour Stingrays as a 14-year-old playing in the under-18s as it was the only comp I could play in back then.
Lear went on to play three seasons for the Steelers in the Tarsha Gale Cup, but with no local open women’s team at the time, the 20-year-old played the last two seasons with the Cronulla Sharks.
Homecoming
A pre-season conversation with Head Coach Jamie’ Scissors’ Szczerbanik triggered the former NSW County U19 representative’s homecoming.
“There’s a new coaching staff on board here this year, and I honestly can’t fault them,” Lear says.
“I spoke with ‘Sciz’ at the start of the season, and I really liked what they had to offer for me.”
“There’s always something special about putting on your home colours. The Illawarra Steelers has always been something special; it is where I got my first opportunity, so it’s really good to be back.”
[Watch Video] Head Coach Jamie Szczerbanik on his team’s preparation for Round 1 against defending premiers Mounties.
Leading by example
This year’s squad includes six of last year’s inaugural Steelers team plus several Tarsha Gale Cup premiership-winning squad members, and Lear is singing their praises.
“They’ve been great. They really lead by example. You can tell that they’ve won a premiership.
“They work really hard and even teach me a thing or two. Everyone has been acting like sponges, and we are just learning from each other.”
While Lear has high expectations for the team, she is keen to keep a lid on it early while combinations are still a work in progress.
“It’s quite different from last year’s squad, but we’ve been doing heaps of team bonding, and all are working together really well, so it’s coming together well for round one.
“Obviously, we all want to win the comp, but at the moment, we are focusing on round one and bringing home the win for the Illawarra this weekend.
Work ethic
Lear is hoping her experience and work ethic on and off the park will hold her in good stead stepping into the front row.
“This is my third year in the Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership, so I have a bit of a leadership role in this team, but we are all still so young, and we’re all still learning.
“For the past few years, I have played a lot in the back row, but this year, they see me more as a front rower, which is really exciting. I’m looking forward to leading from the front.
A fourth-year fitter and turner by trade, Lear is not afraid of rolling up her sleeves.
“I work at the Port Kembla Coal Terminal when I’m not playing footy. I’ve got about six months to go to finish my trade.”
“During the preseason, I was working shift work, so I’d go straight from training to night shift or vice versa.
“I’m lucky my employer is very good. They managed to squeeze me back in on the day shift, which works much better for playing footy. No weekend work.”
Just another eighty minutes of hard work of a different kind.