Queensland has tapped into the underdog spirit and used it to extraordinary advantage since jolting interstate rugby league back into relevance with an iconic 20-10 victory over New South Wales in the inaugural Origin match at Lang Park in 1980.
Due to their comparatively vast pool of talent, the Blues have rarely ventured into an Origin contest as anything beyond moderate outsiders. The Maroons, meanwhile, have produced countless unlikely wins as perceived longshots.
But Queensland’s 1995 exploits remain in another galaxy in terms of backs-to-the-wall Origin overachievement.
The outbreak of the Super League war at the beginning of April turned the representative season on its head. The ARL blacklisted Super League-aligned players from the upcoming Origin series, causing seemingly fatal disruption to Queensland’s preparation.
Brisbane Broncos, who were slated to again provide the bulk of the Maroons’ squad, signed en masse with Super League (apart from prop Gavin Allen, who signed with neither party and subsequently lined up for Queensland).
The Broncos’ Glenn Lazarus, Manly defector Ian Roberts and Cronulla veteran Andrew Ettingshausen also sacrificed near-certain selection for the Blues. Raiders hooker Steve Walters and burgeoning St George forward Gorden Tallis were taken out of the Maroons’ selection contingent.
Broncos coach Wayne Bennett, brought back into the Queensland fold to arrest a three-series losing streak, stood down from the Maroons’ post in protest and was replaced by former great Paul ‘Fatty’ Vautin, a prominent media identity but a relatively inexperienced coach. NSW’s winning 1992-94 coach Phil Gould was one of the ARL’s most vocal proponents.
Among Queensland’s left-field selections borne out of necessity were Papua New Guinea Test halfback Adrian Lam (a Brisbane Wests junior) and unheralded 18-year-old Gold Coast back Ben Ikin, a veteran of four first grade games for the lowly Seagulls who famously was mistaken for an autograph hunter by Vautin when he arrived at the team hotel.
The Maroons’ other seven debutants were made up of emerging youngsters (Robbie O’Davis, Matt Sing, Danny Moore, Wayne Bartrim) and journeymen barely guaranteed first grade spots at their respective clubs (Tony Hearn, Terry Cook, Craig Teevan).
The underdogs made their intentions clear with committed, aggressive defence from the outset. Experienced NSW winger Rod Wishart and makeshift Queensland hooker Wayne Bartrim traded missed penalty goal attempts, before the St George backrower posted the only points of the match on the half-hour mark after Paul Harragon took Gary Larson out of play, landing a 30-metre penalty.
The Blues had a welter of scoring chances in the second half but were rebuffed by desperate defence on each occasion as a miracle began to materialise. Powerful centre Terry Hill was forced into touch a couple of metres out by Brett Dallas six minutes after the break, before Queensland’s other winger Sing brilliantly held a charging Hill up over the line in the 63rd minute.
A swarming gang tackle forced Wishart into touch with two minutes remaining, snuffing out a dangerous movement near Queensland’s line and sealing a euphoric victory, sparking joyous scenes among the Maroons’ no-name heroes on the SFS pitch.
“I knew we would win the game because there was so much emotion, courage and whatever else you would want to call it,” elated coach Vautin said post-match.
“It was a great performance … they couldn’t crack our line.”
While acknowledging Queensland’s deserved win, counterpart Gould played down the apparent gulf between the sides coming into the clash.
“We hadn’t paid any attention to the fact the Blues were raging odds-on favourites,” Gould said.
“When we took the field, both sides were an even-money chance.
“They played well and we took too many wrong options. We had plenty of chances to score, but their spoiling game worked.”
The tireless Larson was a popular man-of-the-match, making 49 tackles and 22 runs. To put the remarkable scoreline in perspective, only five times in the premiership’s 118-season history has a match produced a tally of two points or less.
The unfathomable result provided a sparkling highlight in a season dominated by off-field turmoil and legal jousting – but the fairytale was only just getting started.
The Maroons regained the Origin shield with an equally dramatic 20-12 win in game two in Melbourne, then completed an astonishing cleansweep 24-16 in Brisbane.
