Keidan has big boot stop marks to follow
THE Rayner name was ingrained in Geelong Falcons history when Luke played in the 1992 TAC Cup premiership in the club’s inaugural season.
Now, a quarter of a century later, he and son Keidan have become the first father-son pair to play for the club.
A bottom-aged youngster, Keidan made his debut in the Falcon’s Round 1 loss to Dandenong Stingrays last week and will add to his TAC Cup tally against Greater Western Victoria Rebels on Sunday.
Luke, who was drafted to Carlton after the 1992 season and now co-coaches GFL club Bell Park, said seeing his son run out for the Falcons was “a bit surreal”.
“I guess it takes you back to when I first started. A lot of the good experiences, the memories came back a little bit,” Rayner said.
“It was great for him to get a go last week. I’m sure he was probably nervous but we was well equipped and well prepared thanks to the Falcons’ program.
“It (having us both play for the Falcons) wasn’t something I thought about until it happened. It was a historic touch, is quite nice and it’s something as a family we are proud of.”
Geelong Falcons coach Dan O’Keefe described the first father-son pairing as “pretty unique” for the club.
“I’m not sure how many TAC Cup clubs can say they have a father-son playing pair,” O’Keefe said.
“Luke’s very renowned in the Geelong football community and Keidan is and will be a great player for the club too.”
Despite standout performances from Brayden Ham, Connor Idun and Ned McHenry, the reigning premiers suffered a disappointing loss to the Stingrays in the seasonopener, but are looking to rebound against the Rebels.
“This week is definitely about redemption and a chance to improve. Last week our structures collapsed in a fair bit so the focus in training has been on holding those structures, especially on the outside,” O’Keefe said.
O’Keefe acknowledged the inexperience of the side in Round 1, which had eight firstgamers and seven players with less than five TAC Cup games under their belt.
“We certainly turn up to win, but the TAC Cup is all about making improvements week on week to help kids develop.”
Two close finishes in the pre-season promises to make Sunday’s game a tight contest.