Pickers prove there's more to life than football

The former Canberra and Souths forward could be preparing for another finals tilt with the Rabbitohs, a club about as old as the shed he and his family are toiling in.

After playing 11 games in their premiership run last year, Rabbitohs coach Michael Maguire tried more than once to lure the 27-year-old out of retirement and back to the big smoke this season.

But asking Picker to choose between hanging with stars like Greg Inglis or working with his family is not a fair fight.

Instead, on Sunday Joe and younger brothers Ben and Mick, who played four games for the Raiders, will play for Goulburn Bulldogs in the Canberra Raiders Cup grand final against Queanbeyan Blues.

"It's just home for a start, you're your own boss and we're a very tight family," Picker said of his reasoning behind quitting the NRL for the farm.

"I don't know how far you'd have to go to find another shed where everyone working there is in the same family.

"I'm very close with my brothers and it helped being able to come back and play footy with them.

"He [Maguire] asked a few times about coming back this year and nearly talked me into it, but this is where I want to be."

The shearing life mirrors how Joe played his football - nothing flashy, but always willing to put in a reliable and honest day's work.

The arrival of first-born Lincoln, now seven months, effectively convinced Joe to hang up the boots.

"That was a big reason, we've been thinking about coming home for a while but that was the nail in the coffin," he said.

"He's the first grandchild for my mum and dad and [wife] Naomi's parents."

Like football when finals fever takes hold, September is crunch time at the shearing shed.

For four straight weeks the Bulldogs trio, dad Grant and eldest brother Dennis work their way through ten hour days and 6500 sheep.

It's hard yakka, but it's their comfort zone. For Joe, the Sydney NRL fishbowl was anything but.

"As far as football goes it was awesome, but you'd hold an elevator for someone and they wouldn't even look back at you and say thank you," he said.

"You'd say hello to someone in your building and they'd look at you like you have two heads.

"It just seemed like a town where everyone's in it for themselves and no one's there to help each other out.

"When you come from a place like this, it's a shock."

Joe played seven years and 110 games with the Raiders before he was told he could look elsewhere.

He'd decided to play with his brothers at Goulburn before Maguire came knocking when he and wife Naomi were on their honeymoon in Hawaii.

Although he didn't play in Souths' grand final win over Canterbury, it gave his football career closure and a chance to bow out on his terms.

"It was a strange feeling, as much as people say you're a part of it and you are to a certain point, you miss out on the finale but I'm happy to have done that much," Joe said.

"I wasn't even going to play footy [last year] but to be in the inner circle, there's parts you get to see and do that millions of people want to, and never get the chance to.

"I would have loved to have done a bit more there [Canberra], for sure. But the other path led me to something, without being rude, I wouldn't have done at the Raiders.

"I'm hoping a few of my mates at the Raiders like Fenno [Shaun Fensom] and Crokes [Jarrod Croker] can experience it."

Goulburn captain-coach Mick played four games for Canberra in late 2011 before a chronic hip injury put paid to his NRL career.

Dennis was the first to be drafted into the Raiders junior system. Mick played in Canberra's 2008 under-20 premiership side and Ben was part of the under-20 side which lost 46-6 to Wests Tigers in 2012.

"He [Dennis] led the charge, he came through with [Goulburn product] Todd Carney and those guys," Mick said.

"I just followed along the first few years when Joe and Dennis were playing in the same team.

Mick believes the work ethic borne on the farm has helped him and his brothers taste the big stage.

"We never really did much [off-season] training," Mick said.

"They [Raiders] gave us programs and to be honest there was just no way you'd be able to do the training they serve up to us and work [shearing] all day.

"We used to go back in not too bad [shape] anyway, because we were working all the time.

"When we were playing footy dad would hold on as long as he could, but if we were playing finals it'd all be done by the time we got home.

"When we had days off training we'd always try to come back and help out."

When most footballers are relaxing on a beach after a tough season, the Pickers would spend their summer break shearing.

Some of their teammates thought they were mad, including two current Raiders when welcomed into the inner sanctum.

"Sammy Williams and Mark Nicholls came out once and they didn't hang around too long, they ended up back home watching tele," Mick laughed.

Joe added: "Sometimes it's a bit hard slaving away, sweat dripping off your forehead knowing the other guys are having beers at Fiji or something.

"But my whole career I trained ten-and-a-half months of the year and craved home the whole time.

"It might not be Fiji but we finish work and have a few beers together, it's pretty good."

The brothers will crack open a few ales should Goulburn win their first premiership since 2009 at Seiffert Oval.

Ben and Mick played in last year's extra time defeat to the Blues, a loss which still burns.

"Last year a few of the boys were going to pull up stumps [had we won] like Doddo [Michael Dodson] and Shane McCallum, I'd like to do it for them," Mick said.

"It's been a while since Goulburn won a premiership."

Goalkicking hooker Ben admitted revenge would be sweeter with two brothers by his side.

"It's always something we wanted to do and it's taken a while for us to do it, but to make a grand final the first year playing together is pretty special," he said.

"To lose in extra time was disappointing, we want to amend that and make sure that doesn't happen again.

"We've got nearly the same squad as last year's grand final, it's motivation for a lot of us."

The bright lights of Sydney aren't his cup of tea, but Joe revealed English dual international Sam Burgess was keen for a taste of his more laidback world.

"He always wanted to come up here and have a go on the shears, him and his brother Luke, but football got in the way," he said.

"[Current Souths halves] Adam Reynolds and Luke Keary, I keep in contact with them a fair bit and they're keen to come up."

Joe could still be playing with them but as he helps his baby son walk across the shed floor, he knows he's made the right call.

He still hasn't collected his premiership ring, which is still with Maguire in Sydney.

Some things are bigger than football.

CANBERRA RAIDERS CUP GRAND FINAL

Sunday: Queanbeyan Blues v Goulburn Bulldogs at Seiffert Oval, Queanbeyan, 3pm.