Nathan Hindmarsh finally claims elusive Eels premiership at Legends of League tournament
Finally, Nathan Hindmarsh has thrown the monkey off his back by claiming a premiership with the Parramatta Eels. Not quite an NRL title, but a Legends of League triumph in Newcastle.
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Nathan Hindmarsh knows this one isn’t exactly an NRL premiership.
“Still,” the Parramatta great grinned on Saturday night, “I’m taking it”.
One of rugby league’s greatest hoodoos is officially over after Hindy and his beloved Eels scored an upset win at the annual Legends of League tournament at McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle.
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Playing in front of some 10,000 fans – and with 1980s premiership hero Ray Price as coach – the Eels stormed home against Canterbury to not only win 8-6, but hand the Bulldogs their first ever loss at the tournament.
Earlier in the week, Hindmarsh had told The Daily Telegraph he expected – as was now something of a tradition this time of year – to get his teeth rattled when lining up against a Belmore side that, led by the likes of Mark O’Meley and Willie Mason, boasted back-to-back titles.
Instead, it was the Eels who got home in the Nines fundraiser for the Mark Hughes Foundation, ending a drought that had stretched 330 NRL games, and who knows how many others, for Hindy.
All of which capped off a day where Steve Menzies wore Albion headgear, Robbie O’Davis busted out the worm after scoring, Big Willie sledged everyone bar the ball boys and Cliffy Lyons … well, he played again, too. Yep, even after organisers had insisted the Manly great would only be coaching the Barbarians side this year, Lyons was out there running, directing, everything at age 58.
Or put another way, seven years older than the rest of the field.
“Ah, geez, really?” Lyons shrugged when told of the age gap. “What about Rocket Rod Silva with Canterbury, he’s in his fifties, right?”
Yep, but only 51.
Just as Newcastle favourite Billy Peden, the only other bloke Lyons could immediately remember playing against, was also a whopping nine years younger than the Manly great.
So what chance Cliffy, who now sits on the Sea Eagles board, will be the first ever Legends attendee to be playing at 60?
“Yeah, you never know,” Lyons grinned. “Right now it really is one game at a time”.
Certainly that was the case for plenty of Old Boys, including Dogs prop Roy Asotasi who suffered a knee injury and Knights premiership hero Matty Parsons, who busted the AC joint in his shoulder.
“Which is always the concern coming in,” conceded fellow Knights great Danny Buderus. “Not only putting your body on the line, but your reputation in many ways.”
Wonderfully on Saturday, the old boys came from everywhere too.
Take, for example, the Brisbane Broncos, who not only had Julian O’Neill fly in from Papua New Guinea, where he now works, but PJ Marsh and Scott Minto drove the 2400km round-trip from Rockhampton.
Elsewhere, the Broncos were also coached for this one by the great Wayne Bennett – albeit not the supercoach of seven NRL premierships, but a Gerringong bus driver of the same name.
With Bennett off coaching the England Test team, Legends organisers scoured the country to find the namesake who has coached Rod Wishart, all the Sims boys, even Mick Cronin’s two sons.
Asked about the opportunity to mix with greats like Wendell Sailor, Lote Tuqiri and Tonie Carroll, Bennett said: “Oh, mate, I’ve been floating around all day.
“First time in years I’ve been happy to be called Wayne Bennett.”