- Heilum Luki is primed for a big 2026 with the Cowboys
Frequent adventures on a fishing boat have been heralded as the catalyst for North Queensland star Heilum Luki recovering from a horrifying ACL tear.
Luki, 24, re-injured his knee ligament in 2024, just a couple of years after he first suffered a tear in 2022.
It’s now been revealed the rising star used fishing trips with fellow young gun Tom Chester – who also tore his ACL within weeks of Luki – to help him recover.
Both players were forced to miss the entire 2025 NRL season, it what was a frustrating campaign for coach Todd Payten.
Luki had endured significant heartache on the footy field in his stop-start career.
Despite playing five seasons in the NRL, he’s been restricted to just 57 first-grade matches.
Heilum Luki (pictured) will play his first NRL game since 2024 in Las Vegas with the Cowboys after recovering from another ACL tear
The young forward (pictured) claims his love of fishing helped him in his latest recovery journey
Luki and Cowboys teammate Tom Chester (pictured together) injured their ACLs within weeks of each other and have spent a lot of time together on the fishing boat
With teammate Tom Chester also recovering from an ACL injury, the two rising stars knew they needed to find a new hobby.
The pair purchased a six-metre fibreglass boat and have since spent many hours off the Queensland coast.
They have also created a social media presence, under the username ‘offlandersnq’.
Luki has amassed an impressive fish-catching portfolio.
His hauls include a long-nose emperor, humphead wrasse and southern saratoga over the past 12 months.
The 24-year-old said the exciting adventures helped him and Chester on their respective roads to recovery.
‘It was good for us to get away, give us the opportunity to switch off and give our minds a break from footy,’ he told AAP.
‘Then, when we’re back in the club and in the facility, we’re training hard and competing hard on everything.’
Luki has since returned to the field and took part in North Queensland’s recent trial against Canterbury.
The rising star scored a try in the match, which came 413 days since he suffered his most recent ACL issue.
Meanwhile, second-rower Jeremiah Nanai is set to miss the opening two months of the season.
Tom Chester (pictured, with girlfriend Ashlyn) has played just 12 games in the NRL
Tom Chester (pictured) had a large fan club watch him debut for the Cowboys in 2022
This means Luki looms as a key figure for North Queensland.
The Cowboys play the Newcastle Knights to open the 2026 NRL season in Las Vegas.
It is the third year in a row the first match on the calendar will take place in the popular US city.