At 194cm apiece and pushing 120 kilos, twin behemoths Rory O'Brien and Rulon Nutira are the low-budget players charged with addressing the Dragons' size issue that just wouldn't go away throughout the 2014 season.

It's a second chance for the pair - a fitter and joiner and an abattoir worker - who both chose the responsibilities of fatherhood over promising junior careers as teenagers.

Nutira was just 17 and with the Eels when partner Kata gave birth to twin daughters back home in Christchurch.

He stuck at footy for as long as he could but at 20, with a two-year deal with Melbourne on the table, the now 24-year-old decided to put family first.

"I was given the opportunity to stay with Melbourne but I had a young family, my missus and twin daughters, who were still living in New Zealand," Nutira said.

"I had my chance, I loved it, but I'd been over here five years and I wanted to be a father.

"My daughters were three and it was time to look after the kids and be a provider. I made that decision and I've always been happy with that. It's what I had to do."

It's a decision O'Brien - an under 20s standout with the Dragons - can relate to, having walked away from football at 19 for the same reasons.

"I wasn't making much money, I was doing apprentice work around footy and it just wasn't enough to support my family," O'Brien said.

"I was only 19 back then, and I was making pretty big decisions. I went away and did my own thing, but I don't regret it.

"I've got two [kids] now, I've got a little one at home who's only seven months, so she's keeping us busy."

Both plied their trade in park footy where their careers could've ended but for the intervention of some keen eyes, in Nutira's case, mentor Frank Endacott - a fellow Hornby Panthers product.

"Frank sat me down and said 'I still think you've got it in you and I still think you can make it in the NRL'," Nutira said.

"I believed him and believed in myself so I gave it another shot."

A standout year in Group Nine with Gundagai, supplementing his bush footy wage with shifts at the local abattoir, was enough to get noticed by the Dragons. With the wild dreadlocks and nickname "the butcher", he's a cult figure in the making if he can crack the top grade.

"The attention has been a bit overwhelming. People probably think 'who the hell is he' but that doesn't worry me," Nutira said.

"I just worry about myself and I think I can offer something the Dragons maybe haven't had."

The difference this time is that Kata, twin daughters Rangitiriaa and Teatrau and son Jahkeil are along for the ride.

"The missus is very proud, and that's the best thing," he said.

"We've been through all the ups and downs, but she's stuck with me through thick and thin and we're all very happy to be where we are. That's the ultimate drive ... I want to be here."

It's the same for O'Brien.

"I didn't think I was going to be playing footy again but I've got the opportunity now I want to make the most of it," he said.