Before he runs out for Parramatta on Monday, Sean Russell is sure to look to the heavens and think of his father.
“I just have a little talk to him before I go out – I try to do that before every game,” Russell said. “Just look up at the sky before I run out. I know he is always with me.”
Russell’s father tragically died in a car accident 13 years ago. The task of raising him fell upon the rest of the family, who are also top of mind each match day.
“I was raised by my mum and my sister and my grandparents because I lost my dad when I was about seven in a car crash,” Russell said.
“[Mum] has looked after me since then and raised me into the man I am today. I can’t thank her enough, honestly.
“She did everything – her and my sister did everything; took me to training. I lived in Londonderry, so when I moved to Rouse Hill she would take me.
“There was a year I got injured, early in the year, and she made me go to training and watch the boys, even though it was a 45-minute drive.
Sean Russell in action for the Eels.Credit: Getty Images
“She has been massive for me. My mum has been there since I was little, since I was six, watching me play footy. She hasn’t missed a game since. She is a motivator.”
The Russells are a tight-knit lot. Older sister Lauren was forced to grow up a lot faster than would otherwise be the case if their father had made it home that fateful day.
“Mum always talks about how proud [my dad] would have been. How he would be with all of his mates, bragging about me.”
Eels flyer Sean Russell
“I was actually at my mate’s and I got a call from mum telling me I have to come straight home,” Russell said. “The rest is a bit of a blur, to be honest. My family are really good and tried to make it as normal as it could be. Obviously, it took a bit of a [toll].
“Mum always talks about how proud he would have been. How he would be with all of his mates, bragging about me.
“He was a massive fan. All of my family is close, they all helped me. Him and my mum, I think about them before every game, just how much my mum sacrificed. I try to go out there and make her as proud as I can.”
Russell will get to do just that when he makes his first appearance in first grade in more than a year. The 20-year-old scored three tries in the opening half of the first match of last season, only for it to be derailed when he suffered a punctured lung and fractured ribs in the second stanza.
It took Russell nine weeks to recover sufficiently to resume his career, but he was unable to force his way back into the NRL side as it progressed to the grand final. The Rouse Hill Rhinos product will get another chance to cement his spot when he makes his return in the centres at the expense of Waqa Blake for the Easter Monday clash against Wests Tigers.
It’s a chance to again play alongside his great mate Will Penisini. Both have been coached by Eels and Rhinos coach Brad Arthur since they were teens.
“Now we are living our dream, training as professional athletes, it’s crazy,” Russell said.
“Me, Jake [Arthur], Will Penisini and Samuel [Loizou] came through. Even a few of the other boys, Jontay [Jontay-Junior Betham-Misa], we all came through at Rouse Hill.
“We all played school footy together, that same group. We have been a tight bunch of mates since about 12 when we all came through.”
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