After taking a quick look at Eastwood winger Zak Hickey, it’s hard to imagine that the 24-year old gave away rugby at school because he was on the ‘smaller side’.

Now 6’3 and 100+ kilos, Hickey has set his sights on locking down a starting spot in an incredibly talented Eastwood backline this year.

“I probably hit puberty a bit later than some of the other boys but as I got a bit older, I started to train harder in the gym and listen to the S&C coaches a bit more,” he told Rugby News.

“That and I also started eating a whole lot more food, that was probably the biggest change.”

After growing up playing with Beecroft and Eastwood Juniors, Hickey “turned to the dark side” at school at Kings and played soccer in his senior years.