A pilot, carpenter and wharfies: Where every member of Dogs’ ‘04 Grand Final-winning team is now
As the Bulldogs and Roosters prepare to meet tonight, 20 years after their unforgettable grand final battle, we have tracked down the 2004 premiership-winning team.
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It’s been 20 years since the Bulldogs’ last premiership.
Two decades since Hazem El Masri’s matchwinning try and Andrew Ryan’s premiership-saving tackle.
And what seems like a lifetime ago since a baby-faced Johnathan Thurston gave his premiership ring to injured skipper Steve Price.
They were the golden days. Brent ‘Shifty’ Sherwin and Braith Anasta in the halves, the ever-reliable Luke Patten at the back, ‘Big Willie’ Mason and Mark O’Meley among the forwards and of course ‘El Magic’ and the powerful Matt Utai on the wings.
It was a special team that was destined for special things... it just took a little longer than had hoped to get there.
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“We had such a weird few years before it,” Anasta told foxsports.com.au while reflecting on the 2004 Grand Final.
“We were knocking on the door for so long, we knew we deserved to win a comp — and should have — but we had the salary cup stuff.
“We were just relieved to be there to have a chance to win because we believed we should have earlier.”
The Bulldogs won 17 games in a row in 2002. They were the best team in the competition and likely would’ve been there on grand final day had the club not come crashing down.
In August the Bulldogs admitted to exceeding the salary cap by $1 million over the past two seasons. The club was fined $500,000 and the team was stripped of all competition points.
They went from the top of the table to the bottom and had to watch the Roosters claim the 2002 premiership.
That ignited a fierce rivalry between the two playing groups.
The Roosters defeated the Bulldogs in the 2003 preliminary final and then a year later there was an opportunity for sweet revenge.
“The build-up is huge and the rivalry between us and the Roosters was top shelf,” Anasta said.
“It was hatred, we hated each other, there was lots of sledging and it was sort of personal.
“They’d won in 2002 when we got kicked out and we believe we would’ve won. They wanted to prove that they would’ve beaten us (anyway) so it was a big week.”
But take the emotion out of it and there was still a lot to navigate through for the Dogs.
Roy Asotasi was carrying a knee injury, while Anasta cracked his sternum in week one of the finals against the Cowboys.
“I had to wear a motocross pad to get through,” Anasta recalled.
“I didn’t think I’d get through Penrith (in the preliminary final) but I did and then as soon as we got into the lead I went off just to save myself.
“My lead-up was a bit interrupted because I was just trying to get myself right because I didn’t want to miss the grand final — it was stressful.”
Early on in the week the team had also come to grips with that they’d be without captain Steve Price, who had suffered a knee injury in the prelim.
Coach Steve Folkes, who tragically passed away in 2018, turned to Andrew Ryan to fill the role.
“‘Folkesy’ grabbed me and said ‘can you come up to my office for a chat’ and I thought ‘what have I done’… It was the Wednesday of grand final week… and he just said ‘how would you feel about being captain this week?’” Ryan told the Fox League Podcast.
“I nearly fell over because firstly I had never been captain of an NRL team — actually my last time as captain was in St John’s open schoolboys and I think we got flogged in all three games. So I wasn’t going to tell him my record heading in.
“I was just in shock. I was excited, I was nervous… It was a huge honour.”
Mark O’Meley remembers the week leading up to the grand final as a “whirlwind.”
“Folkesy gave us the choice of whether we want to go into camp or stay at home. We all decided to stick to the same preparation we had been and sleep in our own beds,” he recalled.
For Anasta, who was 22-years old at the time, the opportunity to rub shoulders with Roosters legend Brad Fittler was a highlight.
“I was getting photos with ‘Freddy’ all week because he was the other five-eighth — and my hero,” he said.
“It was crazy for me playing against my hero in the grand final, who I’d looked up to forever... it was surreal.”
Ryan had his own experience with Fittler, who was one game away from retirement.
“I’m there going to toss the coin against Brad Fittler. It’s his last NRL game — and in a grand final — and I’m sitting there for my first ever game as captain going ‘far out’,” he said.
O’Meley has only ever watched the game back once but he remembers “how hard it was” to get into the grand final and feeling of wanting to make it count.
“Once we got there it was the best feeling ever like ‘let’s go and get this.’ Obviously we had a lot of passion from 2002 as well... so in 2004 it was about ‘we’re due’,” he recalled.
Remarkably, Ryan hasn’t actually watched the whole game back. But he has seen the highlights, which includes his tackle on Michael Crocker that will go down as one of the biggest plays of all time.
The Bulldogs had a 16-13 lead but with 15 seconds to go, Crocker broke through. Ryan clung to his ankles and forced Crocker to fall and drop the ball.
He doesn’t remember making the tackle but he remembers the feeling of realising they had actually won.
“My whole body was just tingling. I was overcome with so much emotion, it was a crazy feeling,” he said.
Anasta, however, remembers the tackle like it was yesterday.
“And ‘Bobcat’s’ tackle... What do you...” was asked before he interjected with “oh s**t” and put his hands on his head.
“That was one of the best feelings of my life,” Anasta declared.
“We were all so tired because it was such a close game. We were out on our feet — both teams — so that last ditch tackle... It was such a magical moment... and just relief to know that we had done it.”
O’Meley added: “I think even after that tackle there’s still everyone scrambling trying to make tackles... we didn’t realise the game had finished. Matt Utai was in a scuffle on the sideline and everyone’s still high on emotions trying to shut down the Roosters and the siren had already gone off.”
It was a “brutal contest” according to O’Meley
“The whistle sort of goes into the pocket so we knew we had to roll the sleeves up and play 80 minutes or beyond — whatever it took. The Roosters were very physical at that stage and we were too,” he added.
The win sealed the Bulldogs’ first premiership since 1995 — and bragging rights over the Roosters.
It was time to celebrate.
The players were transported from Homebush to Canterbury League Club on a double-decker bus. The trip would usually take 25 minutes but instead it took “about two hours” according to O’Meley because “everyone was running beside us and driving beside us — it was pretty amazing.”
Anasta laughed when asked about the celebrations before saying “we had a fun team.”
“We had a double-decker bus and were playing ‘We Are the Champions’ by Queen on the way to the League Club,” he added.
“You couldn’t see the road — Dogs fans are the best — it was mayhem.
“The League Club was full, people couldn’t get in, everyone was going mad. It was such an amazing day. The party went for days.”
The 2004 squad will reunite this week to celebrate 20 years since the premiership win ahead of Friday’s clash with the Roosters at Accor Stadium.
Foxsports.com.au has tracked down the grand final team — this is what they’re all up to now.
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1. LUKE PATTEN
The ‘General’ is still very much involved in rugby league via his role as manager of the NRL Match Review Committee. He also has a background in sales and is also currently working in a sales representative role with an Australian company that produces and resells quarried, recycled and landscape products.
2. HAZEM EL MASRI
Hazem ‘El Magic’ earned the reputation as one of, if not the greatest goal-kicker the game has ever seen during his 14-year career. But his try-scoring ability is what was most important in the 2004 Grand Final when he crossed in the 52nd minute for what ended up being the matchwinner. He retired a one-club player in 2009 after 317 games for the Bulldogs and is still involved in rugby league via various ambassador roles.
3. BEN HARRIS
Ben Harris left the Bulldogs in 2005 to join the Bradford Bulls in the UK and then returned to the NRL via the Cowboys. He hung up the boots in 2010 and moved into aviation. Harris built his flying experience in regional Australia — Kununurra, WA and Alice Springs, NT — doing mail and charter flights to remote communities. He’s now based in Sydney as a pilot doing both domestic and international flights.
4. WILLIE TONGA
Willie Tonga went on to spend four ore years at the Bulldogs before joining the Cowboys. He then moved to the Eels before finishing his professional career in the Super League. The 40-year-old is now a proud Deadly Choices ambassador.
5. MATT UTAI
The barnstorming winger, who scored a double in the grand final, traded the football for the tools and has been working as a carpenter ever since he retired from professional rugby league in 2014.
6. BRAITH ANASTA
Arguably one of the most currently recognisable faces from the ‘04 side, Braith Anasta has carved out a successful career in the media. He is the host of Fox League’s NRL 360 and is also the general manager of Sea Roo Sports Management.
7. BRENT SHERWIN
The man dubbed ‘Shifty’ left the Bulldogs at the end of 2007 after 191nrl Games for the club to make the move to the Super League. After retiring in 2010 he kept in touch with rugby league by joining the Camden Rams’ coaching staff and he also returned to the Dogs in 2019 to mentor the club’s halves. These days he’s working as a wharfie and is also an owner and operator of a hook bin truck.
8. MARK O’MELEY
Four years after defeating the Roosters in the grand final, Mark O’Meley — also known as ‘Ogre’ or ‘Shrek’ — then joined the Tricolours for two seasons. He then headed over to the UK to play in the Super League. After retiring from professional rugby league he joined the Wyong Roos in the New South Wales Cup. He pulled on the boots mid-2015 for a one-off game alongside his son for Wyong.O’Meley spent time as NSW Cup head coach for the Knights and is now back at the Bulldogs as a pathways specialist coach and NSW Cup assistant coach.
9. ADAM PERRY
The nuggety hooker retired from the NRL as a one-club player after notching up 133 games for the Bulldogs. He spent 13 years working for the NRL as a regional development manager and then had a stint as a network train controller. He’s now a manager of the New South Wales Rugby League’s RISE program which provides community players with the opportunity to participate in a holistics development program. He also works on the wharves with Brent Sherwin and Corey Hughes.
11. WILLIE MASON
With Steve Price ruled out due to injury, the Bulldogs’ cult hero Willie Mason Shifted to prop and won the Clive Churchill Medal for his efforts up front. Like fellow forward Mark O’Meley, he joined the Roosters in 2008. He joined the Cowboys for a season in 2010, then played six games for Hull KR in the Super League in 2011 and then had a stint in rugby union. He returned to the NRL via the Knights, then Manly before one more year in the Super League with French club Catalans. Mason now hosts a podcast and is a Bulldogs ambassador.
14. RENI MAITUA
After achieving premiership glory, Reni Maitua’s career became marred by off-field incidents. He signed with the Sharks for the 2009 season but half way through received a two-year drugs ban. Maitua returned to the game via the Eels and then was welcomed back by the Bulldogs in 2014. He then made the move to the UK to play in the second tier competition for four years before a lower back injury forced him into retirement. Since then he’s dabbled in boxing, has done some work for the NRL and now owns a cleaning company.
12. ANDREW RYAN
‘Bobcat’ was one of the Bulldogs’ most important players in the grand final. Not only did he step into the captaincy role, but he made a premiership-saving tackle in the dying seconds of the game. Ryan retired at the end of the 2011 season and then moved into a wellbeing and education role with the NRL for nine years. He joined the Knights in 2021 as head coach of the NSW Cup side and is now in a part-time pathways role with the Bulldogs working with regional teams. He’s also working full-time for the Clontarf Foundation mentioning young Indigenous men in schools in Newcastle.
13. TONY GRIMALDI
Tony Grimaldi — ‘Lobster’ — was at the back end of his career when he played in the 2004 Grand Final. Two years later a bulging disc in his neck forced him to retire. He spent years working on the Bulldogs’ football coaching staff as the head conditioner and is now with the Sharks as a strength and conditioning coach.
15. COREY HUGHES
After 213 NRL games over 11 years for the Bulldogs, Corey Hughes farewelled the club to join the Sharks for the 2009 season. He did some work with the NRL but has spent the last 14 years as a wharfie.
16. ROY ASOTASI
Roy Asotasi left the Bulldogs at the end of the 2006 season to join the Rabbitohs, where he won the prestigious George Piggins Medal in his first season. He moved to Warrington in the Super League for two years before retiring from professional rugby league. Asotasi owns ASAPerformance, which runs rugby league skills clinics. He joined Coggee Dolphins, working with their elite players to “help them break into junior representative and NRL pathways teams,” according to a club statement. At 42-years old he’s also captain-coach of their A-Grade side.
17. SONNY BILL WILLIAMS
‘SBW’ was just 19-years old when he played in the 2004 Grand Final. He was a fan favourite... until his decision to walk out on the club mid-2008, with four-and-a-half years left on his contract. Williams spent five years in rugby union before returning to the NRL with the Roosters in 2013 and winning another premiership. He switched back to rugby union at the end of 2014 and then inked a mega two-year deal with Toronto Wolfpack after their promotion to the Super League. But due to financial difficulties amid Covid-19 the club withdrew from the competition. Williams returned to the Roosters in 2020 and played five games before announcing his retirement. He’s had a successful boxing career and works for Channel 9.
18. JOHNATHAN THURSTON
A baby-faced ‘JT’ was a late inclusion to the 17 after Steve Price was ruled out — and his selfless act of giving the captain his premiership ring is often spoken about. The Bulldogs decided to invest in Sherwin which meant it was in Thurston’s best interest to leave. He joined the Cowboys in 2005, won the Dally M medal that year and went on to become one of the greatest halfbacks the game has seen. He kicked a field goal in extra time to claim the Cowboys’ maiden premiership in 2015 and received the Clive Churchill Medal. Thurston does a lot of work in the community, is an expert analyst for Channel 9 and is on the Queensland Maroons coaching staff. He was made a Member of the Order of Australia and 2019 and was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame last year.
10. STEVE PRICE*
Although ‘Pricey’ was ruled out of the game, he was still very much a part of the win. Price was set to have a fairytale ending to his time as a Bulldog — he had signed with the Warriors for 2005 — but a knee injury shattered that. He wore his jersey over a button up shirt as he watched his teammates win the game and then lifted the trophy with Ryan. Price spent five years at the Warriors before retiring and was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2011. He has had a very successful post-playing career which includes running his own business, serving as a member of the Bulldogs’ Football Club board and also spending a year as the Bulldogs’ General Manager of Football. He now works in health and safety.
Originally published as A pilot, carpenter and wharfies: Where every member of Dogs’ ‘04 Grand Final-winning team is now
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