It was all hands on deck in Townsville ahead of the North Queensland Cowboys first match in 1995, just a little over 30 years ago to the day.
The Cowboys had gained entry into the rebranded Australian Rugby League competition two years earlier and it took every bit of those two years to get ‘Stockland Stadium’ ready for opening night.
“I remember the ground was still getting finished so we had training sessions where we helped lay grass on the hill,” inaugural captain Laurie Spina said.
“But it was a really big buzz and we were happy to help because we knew what it was for.”
“Then it absolutely poured on the morning of the match and we didn’t think the turf would last long, but the fans didn’t seem to mind that much.”
Like a lot of ambitious players from Queensland in the 1980s, Spina moved to Sydney in 1983 to join the North Sydney Bears and played the majority of his rugby league career away from home.
After stints at Norths, Eastern Suburbs and Cronulla, the Ingham local returned home to join his local club Herbert River before joining the Cowboys for the club’s inaugural season.
“It was massive for everyone up north,” Spina explained.
“Everyone supported a team in Sydney and then a local team in the Foley Shield but to have a team representing all of us in the greatest competition in the world, it was just something else.”
Spina led the Cowboys onto Stockland Stadium in front of 23,000 fans from all over North Queensland to face the Bulldogs in a physical first round clash that saw two players – Adrian Vowles and Jason Smith – sent off.
“You got to remember, the Bulldogs won the premiership that year so it was the eventual premiers against the little ole’ Cowboys. Then to get a player sent off so early, it was mayhem out there but we stuck to our guns, competed hard and stayed with them.”
The Bulldogs ran in four tries to two and won 32-16 courtesy of a near perfect night from goal kicker Daryl Halligan, but Cowboys fans still left that night with smiles on their faces.
“I remember people travelling from all over North Queensland to be there that night,” Spina explained.
“They’d waited so long for their very own team and were so excited that their young fellas didn’t have to travel to Sydney anymore. It was just a magnificent atmosphere and I still remember the roar when I ran on the ground for the first time.
“We put North Queensland on the map that night and it was pretty special to be a part of.”
