Mekhi Rzadkowski out to impress at Warringah Rats

One minute he was playing in Pirates' under-18 side, still learning the game after switching codes, and the next Northern Beaches club the Warringah Rats wanted his signature.

Still, it took a bit of convincing to get the former Farrer and Oxley High student to make the move to Sydney.

But that happened in January. And mid-way through the season, the 19-year-old seems to have settled nicely into city living while trying to make an impression at the Rats.

Rzadkowski has mostly played third-grade colts for the Rats, but has also tasted second-grade colts action. Playing mainly inside centre, he hopes to force his way back into the third-grade starting lineup.

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The ladder-leading Rats confront Eastern Suburbs at Woollahra Oval on Saturday, with Rzadkowski needing to pass a fitness test (hamstring) on Thursday night to play.

"It's really good," the third-year carpentry apprentice said of life in Sydney. "The Northern Beaches are beautiful."

"I started off in the starting squad," he added, "but dropped off for a few weeks - just with injury and stuff. And I'm working my way back now."

It was in 2021 that Warringah first contacted Rzadkowski, who at the time was in his second season with Pirates' under-18 side (he played some reserve grade too).

The previous season, he switched from rugby league to rugby when the former was cancelled due to the pandemic. That was the ex-Dungowan Cowboys junior's debut rugby season.

Rzadkowski's then-Pirates coach, Paddy Bowen, told Warringah to check out the teen.

"I went over [to rugby] and had a pretty good year, and the coach asked me to stick around," said Rzadkowski, who hails from Quirindi.

"So I gave it another year, and then that's when it all happened with Warringah - they got in contact with me," he said, adding that it "all happened so quickly".

Yes, it did. But getting Rzadkowski's attention and then getting him to Sydney were two different things. The Rats wanted him to play for them last year, but the timing wasn't right.

He said:

"I said no to them, and I thought that was it, really," he added. "And a few months later they came back around and asked me to come for the next year [2023]. So this time I said yes."

Rzadkowski, however, did not head to Sydney with a great season of rugby under his belt. After playing reserve- and first-grade for Pirates in 2022, he pulled the pin on the season early.

"I sort of just lost interest - I wasn't really enjoying my footy like I was in previous years," he said, adding: "I don't know if it was because I moved up to seniors and didn't really have any mates in the team."

Rzadkowski, who made his first-grade debut at age 17 in 2021, said he trained by himself to get ready for the relocation to Sydney

And now that he has extricated himself from his comfort zone, playing at a higher level is on his mind.

"I think I gave up on taking that next step when I was a bit younger - maybe 17. But it all happened so quickly, moving to Sydney. It sort of makes you realise that anything can happen."

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