Lachlan Ilias to make debut against Cronulla after Jayden Campbell injury
“It’s been a really good change for me and my partner. We love our time here and playing good football helps us too. It makes life a lot better.”
When the Rabbitoh axing took place, Ilias suffered a horrific leg fracture in reserve grade following a blow while kicking, before signing a deal with the St George-Illawarra Dragons.
“I never thought I wouldn’t come back, it’s hard to see the positives when you’re in such a bad situation. It was hard at times, but it was never something I thought I couldn’t handle,” Ilias said.
Lachlan Ilias, taken during the Titans’ training.
“It was a long process, but if it hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t be here today. I still have a metal rod in my leg, it will be inside me for the rest of my life.”
“It’s helped me get on top of my rehab, allowed me to stretch my body even more, so it’s been a blessing in disguise.”
At the Dragons, the quick rejection of the call-up became a plea to recall Ilias, who managed just seven games for the Red V (preferred by Kyle Flanagan and Lyhkan King-Togia), and the team dropped to 15th.
This was despite an impressive New South Wales Cup campaign; He led the competition for line tackles (224) this campaign, scoring eight tries and producing 16 try assists and 16 linebreak assists for 13 wins and one draw in 20 outings.
Lachlan Ilias is in pain after breaking his leg.Credit: Getty
Ilias was confident that he was not surprised by the shifting narratives around his name and opted to filter his social media to ensure nothing rugby league related got in his way or affected his ability to guide this Titans team.
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“I still have Instagram but I don’t read anything. I don’t follow the NRL or Channel Nine or anything like that, I just follow my friends and family and that’s it,” he said.
“I had a pretty hard time dealing with it at the beginning, so now I’ve gotten used to it and I think I can handle most things that happen off the pitch.
“I keep a pretty tight circle, so I listen to who I need to listen to and everything else is just outside noise.”
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