Luke Keary: Playing for Ireland at a World Cup is one of my proudest moments

Luke Keary reflected on one of the most memorable moments of his career after inspiring Ireland to a 48-2 victory over Jamaica in their opening game of the Rugby League World Cup at Headingley.

The Sydney Roosters half-back is a former NRL Grand Final winner but admitted the chance to finally represent his country on the biggest stage ran all of his glittering domestic experiences close.

Keary, denied the chance to compete for Ireland in 2017 due to injury, said: "It wasn't to be in 2017 but it is something that has been coming for a long time and it means so much to me and my family.

"I got a bit emotional last night when I finally got to see the jersey with my name on it. I’ve had some pretty special experiences but it is one of the proudest moments of my career."

Ireland ran in 10 tries against the Jamaicans, who were making their World Cup debut and earned one of the biggest cheers when Kieran Rush kicked their only points of the game after the first-half hooter.

Louis Senior was the only man to cross twice but it was Keary who was given the space to steal the show and he admitted the scoreline could have been much harsher but for some gutsy last-ditch defending from Ireland’s outclassed opponents.

The performance earned praise from Ireland head coach Ged Corcoran, who said: "I am immensely proud, not just of the group of the players but also the staff, and that is one box ticked off.

"But for the questionable penalty call we would have had a nice big fat zero, so I’m really proud of the scoreboard. We have set the benchmark but we have got to go up another 15 or 20 levels against Lebanon next week."

Jamaica captain Ashton Golding praised his side’s effort and commitment and insisted they had been far from overawed despite