Kiwi-born St George winger Jordan Pereira has made it to the NRL's big time and the boy from Lower Hutt is still pinching himself
"I'd do this stuff for fun - for free - and that's my job," he says. "I get to throw the footy around and make some new friends with people I look up to, so it's pretty special."
Eighteen months ago, Pereira was stacking supermarket shelves in Queensland, when the Dragons offered him an opportunity he'd only dreamed of.
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"They had a bye that weekend and they said, 'you don't have to be there until Tuesday'. I was like, 'nah, I'm going to be there on Sunday', I was so excited."
But excitement turned to despair on the long drive to Wollongong, when Jordon's brother called with tragic news - dad Michael had been diagnosed with cancer.
"It was so tough, but he just gave me so much motivation," says Pereira. "He didn't want me to go back, because i wanted to go back straight away."
Michael beat his battle with cancer, inspiring Jordon to realise his NRL dream - not that Jordan listens to dad's advice.
"When it comes to rugby league, he knows nothing, sort of like me when I turned up," he says. "I didn't know anything about the sport.
"You know, we were just Hurricanes and All Blacks supporters growing up."
From mid-season ring-in, Pereira is on the cusp of signing a two-year contract extension.
"Everything he does is 100 percent," says Dragons assistant coach Matt Head. "He goes full bore at everything, sometimes too full bore at training for some of the other boys, but now he's got his shot.
It's a rollercoaster year that could reach new highs with a win over Brisbane Broncos on Sunday night.
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