Homegrown Steelers rising star Leeroy Weatherall doesn't have to look too far for inspiration as he maps out a plan to one day become an NRL player. Leeroy's older sister Maddi became a star for St George Illawarra in 2023, after making her long-awaited return to the NRLW following the arrival of her daughter Lariah. Before she became a key cog in the Dragons' machine, Maddi's achievements with the Steelers were legendary. The powerful forward's highlights included captaining their Tarsha Gale side to premiership glory in 2019. Now, Leeroy hopes that he can follow in his sibling's footsteps and forge his own pathway to Australia's top domestic rugby league competition. Standing at about 190 centimetres and tipping the scales at 96kg, the 16-year-old is himself an imposing figure. The Lake Heights teen shapes as a key figure for the Steelers' Harold Mathews side in 2024 as he starts preparing for his second season with the club. And he admits that Maddi has been a great inspiration for his footy career. "All of my family have played footy, but my sister is at the place where I want to be. She's always given me the advice I needed, told me to stay grounded and move up the levels," the prop/lock told the Mercury. "We used to play together in the backyard growing up and she used to always get me good - she can hit for sure. I think she got all of that practise from me. But it's good to see her come back after having a baby. She's doing so well, you can't ask for any more from her. She always gives it 100 per cent. "It would be everything for me to go and play in the NRL. Hopefully I can make it. To have my family watch me on a big TV, I'd love to see that." The Steelers' Harold Mathews team has returned to pre-season training as they aim to build on their seventh place finish in 2023. Squad members have been training out of their new home, the Steelers Academy, which is based out of Wollongong TAFE. Illawarra will play their first trial against the Dragons next weekend. "Pre-season hasn't been too bad so far. It's been good to get around the boys and get a good fitness session in, but more than anything it's about team building," Leeroy said. "I'm confident that we can have some success next year. These boys are the top tier of Wollongong."