onfield enforcer knows how to cruise
by james gardiner
oct. 10, 2013, 11 p.m.
it’s the best 12 grand he ever spent, ruben zadkovich boasts as he turns the ignition in his kombi van.
The mustard yellow, 1972 lowlight camper – surfboard and wetsuit in the back – is the ugly duckling in a collection of the latest models, including a porsche and various audis parked at the jets training base.
Sunglasses on, a customary wave out the window and off down the road the kombi roars.
Say hello to the other side of the jets captain – the laid-back bulli boy who makes the trek down the coast to his home break, sandon point, whenever he needs a dose of reality.
It is a complete 180 degrees from the character most fans are familiar with – the intense, vein-bursting, dog-at-a-bone midfielder who treats every game, every tackle as though life depended on it.
‘‘people often form opinions based on how i play,’’ zadkovich said.
‘‘in my case, and i’m sure in many other cases, it is totally different.
‘‘when i cross that white line i will do anything to win. I don’t care whether i’m liked or not.
‘‘i hope there is 50,000 hating on me at allianz stadium against sydney on friday. As long as we win.
‘‘but when i’m off the field, i care and want to be a good person.
‘‘i have always tried to keep my feet on the ground and be good to people.
‘‘if you do that i find people are very good back to you.
‘‘in newcastle, that is ten-fold.’’
zadkovich makes no apology for his combative on-field style, nor does he intend to curb it.
If a ball is there to be won, a tackle to be made, the jets no.8 is front and centre.
He does, however, object to the well-subscribed theory that he is a loose cannon, easily baited to the point where he snaps. One red card in 70 games for the jets adds weight to his protest.
‘‘sometimes people think a reaction and a rash challenge is something that happens out of instinct,’’ zadkovich said.
‘‘people will see a bad tackle on someone and say ‘ruben has lost his head’.
‘‘what they don’t know is that i made the decision that i am going to go in and tackle this guy as hard as i can. That is what i feel in that moment he deserves or what our team needs.
‘‘it is a conscious decision. I don’t do things without thinking. Everything is calculated.’’
it is a competitive streak instilled in him as a boy.
The youngest son of a former champion queensland bush rugby league five-eighth, the blond-haired tearaway learned to fend for himself and fast.
‘‘dad captained darling downs and won toowoomba grand finals at a pretty good standard,’’ zadkovich said.
‘‘i don’t think it was that though. Me and my brothers chose soccer and played from a young age.
‘‘being the youngest, simon and luke used to smash me. Carrying on and sulking was never going to work. I had to try harder or do whatever i could to win.
‘‘as i got older and stronger, the battles got bigger and harder.
‘‘football is a game where i have often said nice guys finish last.
‘‘you get a select few in different sports – people like [knights legend] danny buderus, he is an all-round, stand-up guy.
‘‘not many people with his kindness make it to the top.
‘‘you have to find the balance of when to flick the switch.’’
simon, now 32, is a remote area nurse in north-east arnhem land. Luke, 30, is a london-based lawyer.
‘‘they are both very good at what they do,’’ zadkovich said.
Ruben, 27, went down the path of football.
‘‘i left the wollongong wolves at 17 to play in the local league with my two brothers at bulli and got a job as a brickie’s labourer,’’ he said.
‘‘i worked for a couple of months until i had enough money to buy an open return ticket to england.
‘‘i rang all 92 clubs from premier league teams all the way through to league two.
‘‘the ones who wrote back were gillingham and luton town, and they both said ‘sorry but we are not interested’.
‘‘eventually through [former wollongong and jets midfielder] noel spencer, he knew an agent called simon thompson, who knew the youth director at queens park rangers. I ended up getting a one-day trial.
‘‘first-team manager ian holloway happened to watch me score a goal, called me over and told me that i was training with him for the next two weeks.
‘‘shortly after that i signed a professional contract for qpr.
‘‘bar for noel spencer knowing simon thompson it wouldn’t have happened.
‘‘i was told in wollongong that i wasn’t good enough and had the wrong attitude.
‘‘i went to the other side of the world and got a contract on my own back.
‘‘a year later i make the australian under-20 side, sign for sydney, win an a-league grand final and go on to play for the socceroos.
‘‘now i am captain of the newcastle jets.
‘‘it’s funny because people say ‘you’re lucky’.
‘‘in many respects we are lucky as footballers because of the lifestyle and how it is.
‘‘but make no mistakes, other than health-wise and having a good body to get to this stage, luck didn’t play the biggest part.
‘‘it was my attitude and my determination. I know that i have earned what i have got. That’s why i work so hard to keep it, and that’s why i want to keep pushing forward.’’
Originally Posted by The Dunster
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