By STEVE MASCORD
THERE are two parts to the decade old story of Sydney Roosters hosting Brisbane on Good Friday. Part one is the game itself, at the Sydney Football Stadium – one of the only places in town to serve beer on the holy day.
Part two is the next day at the races.
“It was always a huge day at the races on the Saturday,” recalls former Rooster Todd Payten. “You’d want to get a win on the Friday night so you could enjoy it more.
“A few of the Broncos players, they’d stay down. You’d see them at the races. In my day, we didn’t talk to them much but they were there.”
If you play for Sydney Roosters of Brisbane, you can bank on one thing each year – not having to play on the weekend during Easter. The Good Friday clash between the clubs in Sydney has been part of the premiership calendar since 2001
“I don’t remember the specifics of when it first came up but the idea was to get more big events into our calendar,” NRL chief operating officer Graham Annesley recalls.
“It was a request from the clubs. It isn’t too hard to get certain fixtures on a certain weekend in the draw. What can cause difficulties is getting them on a specified day.
“For that, we need the co-operation of the broadcasters.”
For this Good Friday – and from now on, according to the plan – two matches are locked in. Melbourne and St George Illawarra will break with the traditional ban on sports in the Victorian capital on that day (because of a children’s hospital telethon) and meet in the afternoon.
That game will be showed between four and six pm in the northern states on Nine.
And the Roosters-Broncos mainstay will be telecast live to much of the country later than night. “I remember it was always an anticipated game,” says former Broncos centre Brent Tate.
“When it first started, the Roosters were in their prime and it was one of the biggest games of the year. The build-up was enormous.
“To be honest, I think it’s getting back to that now with the way the Roosters have started their season. Yes, we had some punters in the team and they stayed down for the races.”
Never an unfriendly fellow, tricolours former Golden Boot winner Anthony Minichiello used to like to hang out with the opposition at the gallops – especially after a win.
“But they’ve moved it out to Rose Hill now,” he laughed, “so it’s not at Randwick any more and not as easy to get to. Still, maybe some of the Broncos boys will still go. I know a few of ours still enjoy it.
Besides, it’s been a while since the Bondi boys have had much to gloat about on Easter Saturday. As our accompanying panel shows, their last victory was in 2003.
“That is something Freddie (Brad Fittler) mentioned last year,” said Minichiello, who has made eight appearances in the annual clash.
“This year we really want to win as many home games as we can to reward our fans and give ourselves a good base. So hopefully we can break that drought.”
According to Broncos insiders, the Good Friday game has always been good for team morale. Whether or not they stay in town the next day, Brisbane players have little choice but to stay in and have a quiet beer with each other after the match.
Nothing else is open, remember.
“The players sometimes have the option of staying down there but I don’t know if any will this year,” says chief executive Bruno Cullen.
“We have a big game in Wollongong against the Dragons a week later. We train on Sunday. Locky (Darren Lockyer) is one who sometimes stays down but his girl is expecting.
“Still, it’s nice to start Easter with a win and we’ve got a good record in this one.”
The Broncos will be relying on science rather than religion to keep their run alive, using NASA-approved sleep-monitoring devices to make sure their stars are at their best.
Whether the same wristbands can be used to keep them away from Rose Hill is unknown.
THE GAMES
Sydney Roosters defeated Brisbane 20-18 at SFS, April 13, 2001
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 22-8 at Aussie Stadium, March 29, 2002
Sydney Roosters defeated Brisbane 27-20 at Aussie Stadium, April 18, 2003
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 26-14 at Aussie Stadium, April 9, 2004
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 40-22 at Aussie Stadium, March 25, 2005
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 24-6 at Aussie Stadium, April 14, 2006
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 32-10 at Aussie Stadium, April 6, 2007
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 20-14 at Sydney Football Stadium, March 21, 2008
Brisbane defeated Sydney Roosters 28-24 at Sydney Football Stadium, April 10, 2009
THE RECORDS
Most Appearances
Broncos: Darren Lockyer – 9
Roosters: Anthony Minichiello – 8
