James Flack’s journey from the outer fringe of junior football into the Norths engine room continues in Sunday’s Hostplus Cup preliminary final at Bishop Park.
Flack will be part of the Devils forward pack meeting Wynnum Manly for a place in the grand final.
It will be Flack’s 18th game of the season and his second preliminary final for the Devils after last year’s win over PNG Hunters.
He’s entrenched in the Devils leadership group but his elevation has not been conventional.
Flack began his junior career with the Papakura Sea Eagles before leaving his native New Zealand as a teenager for life in Melbourne and then Brisbane.
His final year of junior footy was played at Redcliffe, where he was chosen in the Dolphins’ third-ranked Under 18 team before eventually making his way into second-ranked team.
Within two years, he had risen into a Dolphins Colts team that included Trai Fuller, winning the grand final against a Norths squad with the likes of Michael Molo and Kobe Hetherington.
Flack made his Cup debut for Redcliffe in 2019 but says he feels as though his career has been transformed since he contacted Devils coach Rohan Smith.
“I feel that I was a completely different person then to what I am now,” Flack said.
“Norths gave me a train-and-trial deal and I’ve been able to go from there.
“To be honest, it’s been life-changing for me. I’ve been able to grow as a football player but it’s not just those skills that you develop at Norths.
“You develop character and I’ve got a lot of people to thank for that.”
Flack, 26, works in construction management with Apollo Property Group.
He’s one of the many Devils who juggles fulltime work with the intensity of a Hostplus Cup career.
There are no bigger home games for the Devils than preliminary finals against the likes of Wynnum, who are tipped to field Broncos back Selwyn Cobbo tomorrow.
Flack started in the front row when the Devils met Wynnum for the only time this year – a grinding 16-8 win in Augathella in July during Country Week.
He expects another tough clash tomorrow.
“To play at this time of the year is the reason we play footy,” Flack said.
“I try not to get too caught up in the emotion. I get some butterflies thinking about the game but this is an opportunity and it’s exciting.”
