Dykes circling Sharks spine in bid to make NRL return

After getting #554 tattooed on his wrist the week before he ruptured his ACL, Sharks rookie Kade Dykes never anticipated that's how many days he would wait to play NRL again. 

With Cronulla's opening Pre-season Challenge match scheduled 553 days after Dykes played just his second NRL game, the 21-year-old said he is determined to keep the entire backline on their toes ahead of that first hit-out for the season.

"It was actually about three days before I did my knee that I got the tattoo, it was from my girlfriend as a birthday present," Dykes told pan66.com.

"It was nice at the time but pretty hard to look at a few days afterwards.

"But I suppose this year, when I saw it during rehab it sort of reminded me about the end goal and getting back to first grade."

Capable of playing fullback, centre or in the halves, Dykes looked set for a big 2023 season after Lachie Miller was released to Newcastle.

But with first-choice fullback Will Kennedy producing one of his best seasons in 2023, topping his average run and kick return metres, Dykes is willing to challenge any of Cronulla's backline for a spot in first grade.

"My preference is probably fullback because I've spent the last couple of years there now and I’m starting to learn more and more about it," he said.

"But it's obviously a hard position to play and I've still got a lot to learn.

"I grew up playing in the halves also so I’d be pretty confident playing there as well.

"We haven’t been doing much positional stuff yet so I’ve just been doing a bit of everything.

"My main focus at the moment is just getting my body right and getting back to full health and then once we get back from Christmas break, we’ll have a chat and see what's the plan for the trials is."

Hoping to get the final all clear from the rehab team after Christmas, Dykes said he is adamant he will return a better footballer in 2024 and ensure 554 is a number Sharks fans won't forget. 

"I was on such a high at the end of 2022 and had high hopes of hopefully playing a fair bit of first grade this year and that not going to plan was a hard pill to swallow," he said.

"I'm a big believer in everything happens for a reason and obviously it wasn't  what I wanted for last year but I definitely learnt a lot about myself and managed to learn a bit about footy as well.

"I’m pretty much full health now and it's great to be back with my boots on and running around with the boys again."