Yeah

...

in 1986.

Um, yeah, so the whitewash was a big thing, but looking back on it, there was nothing in the games.

There was absolutely a struck match between all those, all those games and the, and that side.

But mate, I, I, I would say if y- if push comes to shove and you ask me about my favorite one, would have to be the first time New South Wales had won in '85.

It was good to win 3-0, but the first win-

Yep.

Yeah.

And, uh, and England were up and about, and I-I've never seen a, a more confident bloke in my life.

Ricky Stewart in the second test, near on with about six or seven minutes to go, and he throws an intercept, and I think, uh, Loughlan scores the try for England, which puts them ahead.

And it looks like Australia are going home for the first time in 30-odd years without the Ashes.

Mm

... you know, they're talking and I'm having an orange and wiping some blood off me head or whatever.

Whatever, you know what I mean? The only time I ever really understood what they were saying, if he got me face to face and go, "Mate," grab me by the, by the shoulders and say, "Mate, I need you to do this and this." Then I'll go, "Ah, got it." But the noise of hearing everyone talk and all that sort-

Uh, how are you, first off, how are you feeling today?

Uh, mate, I'm feeling a little bit let down.

Um, obviously, um, you know, New South Wa- It's funny how the game flipped.

So New South Wales had to start well.

They did that.

Queensland were battling in the second halves of the last three games, and they flipped that.

So I, I can't really believe, um, the six tries in the second half to zero.

Yeah, I think he was

... not necessarily as a player.

Yeah.

My, my, mine has to be, um, because from 1980, we didn't win a series till 1985.

We were only young kids, and, um, Steve Mortimer led, led New South Wa- I think that should be New South Wales' trophy.

Steve Mortimer on the ground praying to the heavens.

Finally New South Wales had won a, a series.

That's my, that's my favorite all-time moment in, in Origin for me personally.

Mm

[laughs]

Well, well if you're not, if you're not up for it, and plus, plus it was the five meter rule, and that made all...

Mate, watching Beaton and all them play in Origin, I thought, "That's the way you play.

That's, that's how a front row's gotta play in Origin." I played in the under 18s, uh, for New South Wales against Queensland on the very first State of Origin night, um, in 1980, and, um, the, the crowd was that big at Lang Park.

We'd had a shower and we'd, we'd played the game, and they said, "You guys can sit on the sideline." Anyway, I saw this bloke run out, both hands strapped up, snot and shit coming out of his nose, black boot polish under his eyes.

And I thought, "Wow, who's that bloke?" It was Beaton.

How everything leading went wrong.

Yeah, it's funny, um, it's funny, mate, um, I, I was a, like a real superstitious bloke.