A Mandurah tradie’s remarkable rise from playing reserves footy to one of the world’s biggest sporting leagues is complete.
In a past life, Lou Hedley was a scaffolder who played back-pocket in the twos at Peel Thunder.
Today, he was officially named on the New Orleans Saints’ roster, the remarkable super-boot that caught the eye of the University of Miami, now landing him a job as an NFL punter.
The eccentric and heavily-inked ex-tradie will now land an eye-watering payday of at least $1.16 million.
Hedley had hoped to be taken in April’s NFL draft after working out with half-a-dozen clubs, but when that dream was dashed, he was thrown a lifeline by the Saints as an undrafted rookie.
After punting in the Saints’ pre-season loss to the Houston Texans this morning, Hedley was named on their roster for the season.
The 30-year-old punted twice in that game, for 91 yards.
Hedley worked with ProKick Australia and former Brisbane and Hawthorn player Nathan Chapman, before moving to San Francisco to attend junior college and then Miami.
It was there he wore the same number as former player-turned-celebrity Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and was given a shout-out from the famous actor on Twitter.
“When he came down we were like ‘OK, head-to-toe full of tattoos’, what have we got here?” Chapman told The West Australian before the draft.
“But what turned up is a really genuine bloke who wanted to work hard and get back into education and go to uni, but also try the punting.
“He just likes being around the boys, he’s good to chat with and got a real good level-head on his shoulders and a real clear focus on the punting.
“He’s a real pleasure to deal with, he trained really hard, loved the gym and sunk his teeth into it.”
The Saints open their season against the Tennessee Titans at home on Monday morning (AWST).
But it comes as another Australian drops out of the NFL fold, former St Kilda player Arryn Siposs dumped by the Philadelphia Eagles after a bungled punt in last season’s Super Bowl.