More footy please: Carney
You'd forgive him for being all footied out, but Dally M medallist Todd Carney just can't get enough.
Carney has been front and centre on the NRL stage for most of the season but no more so than in the past month as he collected the game's most prestigious individual award while his Sydney Roosters charged into Sunday's grand final against St George Illawarra.
It's been a bona fide sporting fairytale after the 24-year-old former Canberra playmaker was banished from the game for 12 months for repeated off-field screw-ups.
But it's that break from the game which has Carney full of running, and itching for his season to extend into the Four Nations tournament featuring Australia, New Zealand, England and Papua New Guinea.
"If the coaches said that after the grand final we're having a week (off) and we're coming back to training, I'd be happy," he told AAP this week.
"I'm enjoying it that much, I'm enjoying the company of the boys and just enjoying football at the moment and I just love the feeling in the place where I am.
"Hopefully my name's tossed around for the Four Nations.
"I'd love to get an opportunity to play rep football in that arena."
Carney admits to doubts about his return to the big-time, but says he sensed something at the 2009 wooden-spooners, under new coach Brian Smith, from the moment he arrived.
"I knew from day one at training when we all started that there was going to be something special from the way we were training," he said.
"Last year was a bad year for them, but before that the Roosters were a top-line team and we've proved that this year.
"I had faith from the start ... hopefully we can prove a lot more."
A lot more would be the first turnaround from last place to premiers since Western Suburbs achieved that feat in 1934.
And the perfect end to Carney's perfect 2010.
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