Hundreds of hours of competition against opponents years his senior helped prepare Isaac Lucas to make his Super Rugby debut just days after his 20th birthday.
But it wasn't the time spent with teammates as one of the youngest members of the Reds squad that helped prepare a player pegged as a star of the future,
It was the endless hours on the footpaths of southern Brisbane suburb Upper Mt Gravatt scrapping against his three older brothers that forged his competitive edge.
Isaac is the fourth and youngest of the Lucas boys, born after Ben, now 31, Matt, 27, and Tom, 25.
And he continues a tradition almost unrivalled in the game.
All four Lucas lads have played at the elite level in either Super Rugby or on the Sevens World Series for Australia and while each has worked tirelessly in a formal setting to improve his craft, there's little doubt the hours spent in those footpath contests laid the foundations for what was to come.
Family patriarch Phil Lucas says young Zac was given some leeway in the early days but there were few other concessions apart from Isaac always partnering with eldest brother Ben so the average age of the "teams" was roughly the same.
"When he was little, yeah, no doubt (he was given some leeway)," Phil said.
"He'd come off the long run occasionally because he'd get a bit cranky.
"But he was always teamed up with Ben against Matt and Tom. They'd play out there for hours."
With the family property at Upper Mt Gravatt unable to contain the boys' matches, they spilled on to the footpath, the gutter creating a natural touchline they learnt to tiptoe to keep themselves safe from oncoming traffic.
"In the early days it used to give us the creepy crawlies because they were right next to the (road), so you'd worry but they obviously managed to keep it all on the footpath mainly," Phil said.
"They'd go over to the opposite footpath at times for their conversions and they'd be kicking it from across the street and around the corner.
"The neighbours used to love it, they'd sit out on their patios and watch them."
Rugby was not the Lucas lads' only pursuit.
Most of them started off playing soccer and all but Ben played rugby league at stages, with the Broncos signing them to scholarships.
"They all liked a bit of a dabble and in fact, the Broncos were very good to them. But it'd be fair to say their hearts were in rugby," Phil said.
Certainly, rugby had Isaac's heart early.
Cliches abound in sport and Isaac knew he could have sounded trite earlier this week when he said playing for the Reds was a childhood dream come true.
But it really is the case for the rusty-haired playmaker, who was a starry-eyed ball boy who watched on as Ben kicked Sunnybank to glory in the Brisbane grand final on the way to sealing his own future as a longterm Reds identity.
Ben went on to play 82 games for Queensland, winning a Super Rugby title in 2011, while both Isaac and Tom were Reds ball boys - Tom having to combat more than just dodging balls, once dealing with the mechanical failure of the motorbike on which he delivered the kicking tee to his brother.
"I guess it's a bit of a cliche sometimes when you say it's a dream come true but it genuinely is," Isaac said this week of donning the maroon jersey.
"I've had Ben come through and I've always been out here supporting the Reds and to actually be in the fold now, it is genuinely a dream come true and I'm loving every moment of it."
After starting the past two games - at fullback and five-eighth - Isaac will come off the bench for the Reds against the Brumbies at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.
And he could shape off against Matt, who is also in the Brumbies' match-day 23.
"Obviously we used to play a lot in the backyard and if the chance comes up to both get out there it'd be pretty special,” Isaac said.
But he won’t go seeking his older brother out.
"I think I'll be more focussed just on doing my own role.”
It's something for which Phil and wife Joanne are prepared though, having faced it before as Matt and Ben went head to head for the Reds and Waratahs.
"This has happened a number of times now, mainly with Ben and Matt, it's happened a few times with them," Phil said.
"I say I get splinters from sitting on the fence.
"I could never cheer against one of the boys … you've just got to try and remain fairly neutral. But the boys are not silly. At the end of the day, we've probably always been Reds."
Phil and Joanne are immensely proud of all their boys and while they would never cheer against any of them, it was with mixed emotions that they watched Matt start his professional career at the Waratahs given their maroon allegiances.
"The biggest thing for my wife and I to come to grips with, is (the Reds) can't keep them all," he said.
"Growing up and coming through in my early days, I used to go out (to Ballymore) and cheer. I came through the Boo a Blue era and Matty initially went to the Waratahs.
"The bloody Waratahs. It was a culture shock for us. Fancy going to the Waratahs.
"But anyway, that was something we had to deal with.
"Quite frankly, Matty enjoyed being with the Waratahs but it's a big step from being at home here in Queensland.
"But it's a different game. It's coming to grips with the professional era when you've come up very much through the amateur ranks."
It's the nature of professional rugby though and one Phil well understands having watched his sons traverse the world to conquer their dreams.
Ben now plays in France with Grenoble in the Top 14, while Matt is with the Brumbies, having also played Sevens. Tom travelled the world on the Sevens circuit and has competed at two Commonwealth Games, winning bronze in Glasgow in 2014, while an achilles injury cruelly ended his Olympic dream in 2016.
He's now back in Brisbane continuing his engineering studies as he comes to grips with life as a professional athlete having come to an end.
Isaac is the only member of the Lucas quartet still living in what is now a much quieter family home though - and one in which Phil and Joanne have been able finally to banish the $600 grocery bills that used to be a regular part of bringing up four sporting stars.
And while the 20-year-old is only just starting his journey, he may be the best of the lot.
It's a comment that's been thrown around by many, including Reds captain Samu Kervei.
"I think Samu's looked after me pretty well there, the boys haven't taken it too well," Isaac said jokingly of his brothers' reaction.
"Nah, it's all fun, it's all fun and games. A bit of banter around the family dinner table never hurt anyone.
"It was a bit of a weird one, you sort of laugh. It was good to hear but you don't look too far into those sorts of comments, it's just pretty fun."
Isaac's feet are firmly on the ground and there's no danger of him getting carried away with compliments that have come from plenty of rugby heavyweights.
But the plaudits carry an unseen weight Phil believes the youngster was carrying on his shoulders before making his Reds debut.
"I think for Isaac, he can speak for himself but I would suggest there's been a lot of pressure on him," Phil said.
"Having all his brothers go pretty well, there's probably a lot of comparisons. Even what Samu said, that Isaac's the best of them. It's a lot of pressure on the boys to succeed."
There's' no pressure from Phil and Joanne though, just a pride at seeing their lads' hard work and dedication pay off.
"They don’t play the game to go this way but it was always their dream," Phil said of them all playing professionally.
"They've all been extremely competitive - that's the word I'd use for them. They've always been wanting to excel and the effort that they've put in is quite incredible.
"It's very pleasing to see - and gratifying too - to see them turn into young men that have achieved something in their life."
