Former Melbourne Storm fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen has delivered a candid update on his future, admitting he is unsure if he will ever return to professional sport and describing his next chapter as a "blank canvas".
A Deliberate Pivot Away From Sport
The 27-year-old, who played a key role in Melbourne's last two grand final campaigns, confirmed he has no regrets about his decision to walk away from the final year of his lucrative contract with the Storm. Speaking at the Australian Open pro-am at Royal Melbourne on Wednesday, Papenhuyzen outlined a clear plan for 2025.
"I've always been pretty set on next year as a gap year for sport in general, so the only sport I'll be playing is golf," Papenhuyzen stated. He added that the recent delays to the proposed rebel rugby competition, R360, had no impact on his plans, as he never intended to play any organised sport next year apart from hitting the fairways.
"The plan was to always have a year off and try a few different things and see how that goes so that hasn't changed for me," he explained.
No Current Plans for a Football Return
When pressed on whether he could see himself pulling on the boots again in the future, Papenhuyzen's answer was definitive. "Maybe playing touch footy at a local park or something like that but honestly, right now, no," he said.
The dynamic player, whose career was marred by significant injury setbacks, reflected on his decade in rugby league. "Life's only short so if I'm my 80-year-old self looking back now, what's something I regret not doing? It's probably taking a chance and doing something else," Papenhuyzen mused.
He emphasised the open-ended nature of his decision, noting, "I'm sure I'd weigh all options up if I got to that feeling again, but right now I'm just looking at it as a blank canvas and I get to write that next chapter."
New Passions and a Potential Career in Mentoring
Papenhuyzen revealed that his extensive time rehabilitating injuries fostered a deep interest in psychology and mental performance. He is now actively involved in mentoring young athletes.
"Who knows, that could be the new career path, but I really like that side of things and I really benefited from my career so hopefully I can share that message with other people," he said.
His immediate sporting commitment is far removed from the NRL arena. Papenhuyzen's only confirmed event is caddying for professional golfer Daniel Gale at The Cathedral Invitational tournament in country Victoria next week. "I'm actually caddying for Daniel Gale next week at the Cathedral Invitational so that could be the new career, we never know," he joked.
For now, Papenhuyzen is relishing his newfound freedom. "I'm really enjoying this stuff now, doing the mentoring and getting to play golf and going up to Sydney and seeing family, which I didn't get to do too much the last few years," he concluded.
