“It happened before the second half of the first game of ’95. The narrative is important. The Super League war has raged; certain players couldn’t be picked for NSW and Queensland. But for Queensland it was more devastating because we couldn’t pick Broncos, Canberra or Canterbury players. So they’re out – we have no Allan Langer, no Kevvie Walters, no Steve Walters, no Steve Renouf, etc. We picked nine Origin rookies, from memory.

“We were in the change sheds. We had one Australian rep player, Dale Shearer, who had probably come out of retirement ten times … New South Wales had 12 Australian rep players.

“So we shouldn’t have got within a bull’s roar, let alone won the series 3-0! In the change sheds, they're all nervous, especially the rookies. They could hear the crowd and everything.

(Photo by Getty Images)

“Our veteran, fearless forward Gary Larson, walked in and said, ‘Let’s give ‘em some of that ‘Queenslander’ stuff!’ The call had been passed down through the years. I learnt it from the late, great Peter Jackson; he told me what ‘Queenslander’ meant to him: it was, ‘Find something from inside yourself, no excuses, help your mate.’

“That’s what he told me and I believe it to this day. We told the young blokes that year how important it all was. So in the sheds, just before the second half, Gary came up to me and said, ‘Mate, give it some Queenslander!’ So I started screaming it in the sheds, everyone was screaming it … until we started walking down the players’ race and everyone else shut up!

“Fundamentally, the ‘Queenslander’ call and cause was all about helping your mate, no excuses. I’m so proud that it is basically attached to me. If I happen to be the public face of it, I’m honoured.

“Why it is so powerful and strong, is that, for every Queenslander, it’s their brand; especially over the last decade and a bit, with what the Queensland side has achieved. It’s just gotten bigger; today it’s the biggest brand in Queensland. You go to Suncorp Stadium on State of Origin night, the crowd screams it before the game starts, and they don’t stop. And the players hear it, they know. They can sense it.”