Luke Keary is channelling his favourite commentators from the NRL, NFL, NBA and EPL to create his own style as he embarks on a new career post retirement.
The retired NRL star did it all in his glittering playing career, winning three premierships and a Clive Churchill Medal with the Rabbitohs and Roosters, as well as playing Origin for NSW and Tests for the Kangaroos and Ireland.
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He also finished his career for Catalans Dragons with 27 games in the Super League before hanging up the boots after the 2025 season.
Now after getting a taste of rugby league commentary during his playing career, a sliding doors moment which saw Kieran Foran leave Fox League to take up the full-time Manly coaching role has fast-tracked Keary’s commentary career.
Keary will be joining Fox League’s coverage on Kayo Sports for the rest of the season and said he is enjoying the challenge of growing as a media personality, comparing it in some ways to what he experienced at the start of his first grade career back in 2013.
“It’s kind of like footy at the start you just jump in and I guess you’re just going hell for leather like you would as a young player,” Keary told foxsports.com.au.
“And then you slowly learn different lessons and make mistakes along the way, say things or do things you wish you had done better and then you do hopefully do it better the next time.
“Then you hopefully just keep getting better and learning and then get to a point where you’re really confident in the way you can present things and look at the game and analyse it, but I think that’s a long way away.
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“At the moment I’m just like, see it and say it, that’s probably it. Don’t get personal about it because I feel like I’ve always been able to read the game well but then trying to just say it in a way where people can understand it.”
While a fan of all his new colleagues, Keary is hoping to develop his own style rather than emulate one commentator in particular, but admits to taking elements from other experts both in rugby league and in American sport, which he follows with a passion.
“I listen to all of them and I like different ones, I think they’re all good in their own way and they’ve all got a different style,” Keary said.
“It’s like you try and take the bits I guess I enjoy the most. It’s like a player you kind of watch all the players that you love and then you try to take little bits from each one of them.
“But I also consume a lot of American sport too like the NFL and NBA and I watched a lot of EPL when I was over there, so I got to hear those guys, but I wouldn’t say anyone in particular.”
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Some media personalities Keary has been drawn to include NBA expert Colin Cowherd, NFL analysts Tom Brady and Dan Orlovsky and English Premier League legend Roy Keane, although he stresses he doesn’t want to copy any of them solely.
“Colin Cowherd is good just because the way he can find a topic, but then relate it back to something like everyday people do like a business or something that people can really understand,” Keary said.
“I reckon Tom Brady’s being good with the analytical side of it.
“I like Dan Orlovsky because he’s got the analytical side, but he’s also got the personality side and he can kind of say things and be opinionated without going over the top, but also back it up with whether it’s evidence or footage or a reason to explain it.
“Kurt Warner is pretty good more on the analytical side of it.
“I like the Manchester United legend Roy Keane. I don’t want to be like him, but I like that he can show his emotion and is probably too honest sometimes. You know what you get with him and he is never going to lie or protect. He never protects Manchester United.”
Keary has earnt high praise from experts in the industry and punters on the street alike for his ability to sum things up in a digestible and concise way, while he also isn’t afraid to give his opinion.
However, his main aim is not to go into any game or situation with a preconceived way of thinking or bias.
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“I never want to have I guess an agenda or I don’t want to ever be biased,” Keary said.
“I want to see stuff as if I was sitting at home with my mates and talk as if I would with them.
“So if I can see something’s really good or I think I can see something going on in the game I’ll say it and then if I feel like something’s not good or there’s a reason for it I’ll try to say that too, but I want to always be able to explain it and articulate it in a way which people can understand and not just say, ‘So and so is bad’ and then not explain why or so and so is playing well.
“But so far I have just gone, just be yourself and be as honest as you can both ways whether it’s good or bad or if I have an opinion on something, say it, but make sure you know how to articulate it and make sure I have thought about it and never get personal with someone.
“Like it’s not personal. It’s just you’re commenting on the game or their performance.”
One of the challenges Keary faces is commentating on players, who he shared a dressing room with as recently as 2024 in the NRL.
The 34-year-old is conscious of being too tough on players without backing it up with evidence and says it is not personal, it is just what he sees around their performance.
However, he conceded it is hard on players having to listen to commentary while you are playing.
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“As a player they probably listen a little bit more now, but you would be surprised we probably didn’t as much back then,” Keary said.
“But I feel like as long as it is not like a personal attack and they (players) know that those guys (commentators) are there to entertain the audience and people do it in different ways.
“But it is hard as a player. I copped it both ways at different times. You get the good stuff when you play really well and you get people questioning when you’re not. That’s just part of the whole thing and I never I never took anything really too personal when I playing.
“But you can cop it a lot more if someone can articulate it in a way where it makes sense to a lot of people and you’re not just bagging people or you’re not just saying things are really good and everyone can see that at home.
“Everyone can see if someone’s playing really well, but why they playing well or why is a team all of a sudden playing really well or why have they dominated for so long?
“That’s probably the one thing I’ve enjoyed about it being able to look a little bit deeper than saying, the Panthers are playing really well. Why are they actually playing well? What are they doing that people at home maybe can’t see.”