Facing your in-laws is daunting for anyone, but for Reilly O’Brien, it’s extra tough given Ned McHenry is one of those ‘in-laws’ sitting across from him at the dinner table.
When McHenry was drafted to Adelaide last November and he moved interstate from Geelong, he spent his first weeks living with the Crows ruckman and Jake Kelly.
From there, the teenager was placed with a host family, and it just so happened he moved in with the parents of O’Brien’s girlfriend, Chloe.
“’ROB’ comes around all the time, too often unfortunately,” McHenry said.
“Him and Chloe come over for dinner so he’s with the in-laws and I’m one of them now.
“So, I roast him with them – it’s all of us against him.”
It seems O’Brien will have to get used to the roasting, given McHenry was one of three draftees who recently re-signed with the Club for another two seasons.
The midfielder was ‘stoked’ to receive the extension and is now looking forward to investing in life in Adelaide.
“It’s a move that me and my family are really excited about, knowing that I am going to have a real base here in Adelaide,” McHenry said.
Reports from the coaches suggest that his work ethic, football skills and personality are what earned him the extension.
“Collectively with the first-year boys, the feedback from the coaches, and a few players as well, is that we’ve come in and had a good balance of enjoying ourselves whilst putting our head down,” McHenry said.
“We have good intent to work hard and try to be professional and take as little time as possible to adjust to the demands of doing this full-time.”
The 19-year-old’s ability to have fun has been evident - his prank on co-captain Rory Sloane a prime example.
But his work ethic has also been on show in his seven games for the SANFL Crows in 2019, with McHenry running hard on the wing.
He’s averaged 19.7 disposals a game, to go with a massive 11-tackle effort against Central District in Round Five and 19 contested possessions in Round Six against Norwood.
Since arriving at West Lakes, McHenry has kept a close eye on experienced teammates Matt Crouch and Sloane.
“One of my main goals is improving my ground ball, so being really clean at ground level and being a one touch player,” he said.
“You see blokes like Matty Crouch and ‘Sloaney’ very rarely fumble the footy, so I’m working on that and my field kicking – making sure I’m really neat and efficient by foot.
“I’ve still got a bit of work to do, but it is progressing well.”
STRACHAN UP FORWARD: Rookie embracing move
When he’s not on the football field, you’ll often find McHenry out on the water or down at Northbank Marine at Lonsdale, where he is building a new boat.
Despite being new to South Australia, he has covered a lot of the State already – from snapper fishing in the Yorke Peninsula to tuna fishing at Victor Harbor.
“I love fishing and we’ve down the rounds and fished at places like O’Sullivan’s Beach, West Beach and Aldinga,” McHenry said.
“I’m waiting for the new boat and we’ll be able to do it in more comfort.”
