JERMAINE McGillvary may be one of the hottest properties in rugby league but he almost packed it in before his road to the top started.
Being hammered 110-0 almost sent him to the pub with his mates every weekend.
The England winger could virtually name his price if he decides to head to the NRL after 11 tries in 10 internationals.
A brace against Papua New Guinea and two assists for Kallum Watkins only added to his reputation.
But had he followed his initial feelings after going through an academy thumping by Leeds, McGillvary would have been nowhere near where he is today.
The ace, who had England team-mate Ryan Hall score a hat-trick past him, said: “I went home, woke up the next morning and I’d never been
so sore in my life. I just thought, ‘Why am I doing this? I could work a 9-5 on the building site and get on the lash every weekend with my mates.’
“I wondered why I was putting my body through that, getting smashed and I probably wouldn’t even make it.
“But I made a sacrifice, quit my job and had no cash, just to give it a good go through the pre-season. I got better, a lot of people got injured and I got my chance.
“My dream was to play Super League and I did that, and now I’m playing on the biggest stage in the world. I’m ecstatic – I just want to keep
living the dream.
“I’m not the most talented player, I’m not naturally gifted, I’m not the fittest player in the world. I’m not perfect and I always try to improve and I work hard on the little things in my game. You can see out there I just try and work hard for my team.”
McGillvary was not delighted with his brace and assists, he was kicking himself for his role in Garry Lo’s try in England’s 36-6 quarter-final win over Papua New Guinea.
But he at least took comfort from the fact his right side partnership with Leeds man Watkins is building in time for Saturday’s semi-final with Tonga.
He added: “It’s building all the time. We’re working on little things in training and as you can see it’s coming along – he set me up for two and I set him up for two.
“We’re reading each other’s games a lot better compared to 2015 when we first started together.
“Kallum is having a massive tournament already, and he’s got a huge future ahead of him. He’s going to blossom into one of the world’s best players.
“Age is on his side – he’ll be England centre for the next five, six, seven years. When I eventually finish playing I look forward to watching him. “
“Talk of NRL is definitely nice, being appreciated for the job you’re doing, but my first goal is to try and win a World Cup.”
McGillvary, 29, is certainly as humble as he is good. He still speaks of living close to his all-time hero, Henderson Gill.
And he may not even be the biggest sports star in his own family if son Isaac keeps on the same path at Premier League giants Manchester City.
He said: “He’s seven and he plays a year above his age. He’s doing outstanding.
“I’ve been getting updates from his coaches while I’ve been over here because I normally take him three times a week. They’re really happy with him.
“Sometimes when they play other academies it’s another year above his age, so under-9s as a seven year old, but he holds his own.
“I try and install into him that I’m not too bothered about his performances but you give it your best shot, that’s all you can do.”
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