MIKEY Lewis had it from the moment he walked into Hull KR, Mose Masoe – one of the Robins’ biggest legends – has revealed.
And their first Grand Final appearance is a living example of the saying, ‘Good things happen to good people.’
Talismanic half back Lewis has inspired Willie Peters’ men to Old Trafford and is favourite to be named Steve Prescott MBE Man of Steel tonight.
But Masoe, the hulking prop whose career ended with an injury that almost left him completely paralysed, knew he had it the moment he saw him.
He recalled: “It’s like a David v Goliath match up but I always knew Mikey had something special.
“He was eager to learn and has that bit of swagger about him, he knows what he can bring.
“I was there when he joined and was coming through our academy – he was 15 or 16 – but he came into first team training and you could just tell he had something.
“Some kids are talented, but he had the hunger as well. I always knew he was going to go far.”
Hull KR are riding a wave of emotion as they head to Old Trafford to face Wigan on Saturday, aiming to end a 39-year trophy drought – seven years after Masoe joined them when they were in the Championship.
The Theatre of Dreams may have seemed a million miles away at that point but owner Neil Hudgell has masterminded a build that has resulted in their big day, a year after reaching Wembley.
And the way the club reacted after the freak incident that saw a ligament in his neck snap and block his spinal cord, leaving him temporarily paralysed, as he made a regulation tackle backs up his feeling it is deserved.
He can also deliver a lesson in how to beat Wigan at Old Trafford after doing it with St Helens in 2014, although getting one of their players sent off – like Ben Flower was – is not part of it.
He added: “When I came to the club, we’d been relegated, got back up and had a couple of years fighting relegation. We were just happy to be in Super League but we were slowly building.
“Every year, we were just getting that little bit better and there are too many good people at the club for it not to be successful.
“Neil has put so much in, not just financially but he’s been setting them up, not just for tomorrow but for years to come.
“It’s great to see it pay off for people like him but they’ll have to go toe-to-toe with Wigan. Even in 2014, when they played with 12 men for 75 minutes, it still took all 13 of us to beat them.
“So try to grind them out, then players like Mikey can do their stuff when the forwards start to tire.
“And I’ve noticed this year that Rovers like to grind teams, which is probably something Willie has brought to them and that’s really good to see.”
After suffering a career-ending, life-changing injury in January 2020, just being upright, moving and playing a part in family life should be enough.
But the big man with even bigger determination is back and working – as an Uber driver on Australia’s Sunshine Coast!
The 35-year-old also delivers wellbeing talks in rural Australia as he told SunSport: “I’ve been doing it for five months now, a few days here and there. I absolutely love it.
“It’s fun. I meet people, have a conversation and get out of the house. I’m still using crutches to walk – I can without them but if I fell, it will be really hard to get back up – but getting back to work has been great for me.
“And I’m giving wellbeing talks in rural Australia. I speak about my career experiences and how I helped myself after my injury, to help with their wellbeing and getting back to work, which is a big issue.”
