Pinballing past opponents, felling larger men as the last line of defence or exhorting his team-mates, James Tedesco still plays every NRL game like it could be his last.

Because his first one could well have been.

“My career didn’t start the way I wanted it to,” Tedesco says of that first first-grade game, memorable for all of the wrong reasons.

“I’d just turned 19 that year, had a great preseason and was looking forward to the start of my career and the whole year in round one.

“That got taken away pretty quickly.”

On Saturday night, in the Roosters’ elimination final clash against Manly, Tedesco will run out for his 250th NRL game. In a strange quirk, it doubles as an even more significant milestone - 300 matches - when his appearances for City, state, country, as well as those in the World Club Challenge and Prime Minister’s XIII, are also tallied.

There was nothing to suggest anything but a long and stellar career during the opening half-an-hour of Tedesco’s NRL debut for the Wests Tigers, in the opening round of the 2012 season.

And then, without a hand laid on him, after attempting a left-foot step like that of childhood idol Brad Fittler, Tedesco’s knee blew out. His season was over.

There were other setbacks upon his return. Subsequent seasons were cut short by knee, ankle, jaw and shoulder surgeries. Enough misfortune to make Tedesco question just how much he wanted to pursue his dream.

“For the following years, I had about three or four major surgeries,” he says. “I had a lot of doubt about my body physically, whether I would get through the lengthy career that I wanted.

“Having those setbacks early and a lot of surgeries, I learnt the hard way that you’ve got to look after yourself physically and mentally. It’s not just getting out to training and games, there’s a lot of things away from training.

“I was able to turn that around. The last six or seven or eight years, I haven’t missed many games and racked up the games pretty quickly. That’s pretty cool.”

Getting onto the field was a challenge, tasting success on it was a different one altogether. At the Tigers, Tedesco was a member of the “Big Four”, alongside long-time friends Mitchell Moses, Luke Brooks and Aaron Woods. Injuries restricted the number of times the quartet took to the field together, and even when they did their winning percentage was well below 40 per cent.

Only after each had left - in Brooks’ case, a 2024 move to Manly that puts him on a collision course with Tedesco on Saturday - did their careers really kick on.

‘Having those setbacks early and a lot of surgeries, I learnt the hard way that you’ve got to look after yourself.’

James Tedesco

“That’s just how it is in the footy world,” Tedesco says. “We all would have loved to stay together, we’re all close friends and wanted to stay with our junior club that gave us a shot.

“That’s footy sometimes. We [have] all got different opportunities at different times. For me leaving and getting back-to-back premierships, it doesn’t really get better than that.

“We all still live in the Tigers area, we’re still close friends, but have all had different opportunities at different teams.”

The opportunity to play at the clubs he grew up supporting is not lost on Tedesco. In 2018 he joined the Roosters, who sport the same colours he wore while playing for his junior club, the Camden Rams.

“I remember crying when they lost the grand final in 2004 to Penrith,” he recalls.

“I loved Freddy [Fittler]. The left-foot step, stuff like that, I imitated him in the backyard.”

And what a backyard it was. The home is set on a sprawling 240-hectare property in Menangle, housing the family and about 80 head of cattle. His father, John, erected posts and mowed a makeshift field, on which a young Tedesco would left-foot step until it got dark.

Your correspondent visited the property in mid-2016, when he was still at the Tigers and first being touted for higher honours. Standing in his Field of Dreams, he posed patiently as the Herald’s photographer hoped a disinterested cow grazing in the background would raise its head for the money shot.

“It’s good for the confidence to get mentioned for those rep honours,” Tedesco said at the time.

A couple of months later, he made his NSW debut.

Much has transpired since. A switch to the Roosters, where he has won two premierships and ascended to the captaincy; a regular for the Blues and Kangaroos, where he has won series and World Cups as player and skipper; a Dally M player of the year award; three RLPA player of the year gongs; three Brad Fittler medals; and a Wally Lewis medal.

He is equally proud of what he has achieved off the field, in becoming a husband, father, an author of children’s books and, as recently as last month, partner in Supreme Souvlaki, a Belmore-based butcher his wife’s family just bought into.

“You’re always on the go, that’s how it is with footy, there’s not much time to sit back and reflect,” he says.

“I’ve achieved a lot of things, there have been a lot of highs and a lot of downs as well. I’ve always been proud of how I’ve held myself. Becoming a dad, that’s probably the biggest achievement, along with my career.

“I love being a dad and I love captaining my team as well. Five or six years ago, I didn’t see myself as captain, I’d just do my job and play footy.”

The 31-year-old is in no hurry for it to end. It is a sign of his humility that, after being dropped as fullback and captain of NSW, Tedesco answered an SOS to return to the fold, only to be dropped again.

Should the Kangaroos or Blues require him in the future, “Teddy” will answer the call.

“You take the positives out of that, for sure,” he says of his interstate axing.

“I’ve been able to put all of my energy into the Roosters and leading them. It’s a taxing period, the Origin period, and I’ve obviously done it for a long time.

“That’s a positive for my body-wise as well, I feel physically really good at this time of year, where in previous years I’ve been more sore and fatigued.”

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After being criticised for his form last year, Tedesco, along with Storm star Jahrome Hughes, is considered a frontrunner for the Dally M medal. Next year marks his last on contract with the Roosters, but he feels there is more to give.

“I’m happy with how I’ve been playing this year,” he says. “My body is in a good spot, 31 doesn’t feel too old at the moment.

“We’ll see how we go in the future. Obviously, I’ve got next year and hoping I can add to that.”

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