One of the NRL's most durable players, Issac Luke, has decided to hang up his boots.
Luke made his NRL debut with South Sydney in 2007 and racked up 286 games across stints at the Rabbitohs, Warriors, Dragons and Broncos, as well as 43 Tests for New Zealand.
The 34-year-old hooker played nine games for Wynnum Manly in the Intrust Super Cup in 2021 after going close to securing more NRL time with the Broncos earlier in the season.
He played 188 matches for the Rabbitohs but missed out on the 2014 grand final after he was suspended for a dangerous throw on Rooster Sonny Bill Williams in the preliminary final.
Luke joined the Warriors in 2016 and played 83 games for the club before heading to St George Illawarra in 2020.
He played just three games at the Red V before being released to join the Broncos.
Issac Luke representing New Zealand against Australia in 2013. Photo Credit: NRL Photos
A handy goalkicker, he booted 205 goals in the Telstra Premiership while racking up 50 tries for a career haul of 610 points.
In making the decision to retire, Luke told the New Zealand Herald he had exceeded his expectations by a long way over the course of his career.
"My dream was to always be a Kiwis player. The All Blacks are the pinnacle in New Zealand as it was always rugby throughout school, but I was told I couldn’t play 1st XV because I played too much like a league player, so I bled Black and White well before I put it on," Luke said.
Luke was an integral member of New Zealand's stunning 2008 World Cup final upset of the Kangaroos in Brisbane and the 2010 and 2014 Four Nations triumphs during a golden era for the Kiwis.
Story originally published on NRL.com