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Why Mal Meninga should be the next Immortal

Posted: May 14, 2018, 1:06 pm
by greeneyed
Why Mal Meninga should be the next Immortal

It's a moment in sporting history that almost 30 years later remains clearly in the memory of anyone who saw it. With the Kangaroos only seconds from their first series defeat by Great Britain in two decades, Mal Meninga called, "Inside, Ricky", and shouldered aside Great Britain centre Carl Gibson to snatch victory for the Kangaroos in the second Test of the 1990 Ashes series at Old Trafford.

However, it is not just the endearing memories of that try and the numerous other highlights of a remarkable career spanning 16 seasons which dictate that Meninga should become the game's next Immortal, along with Dally Messenger.

Read more: https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/05/14/why ... -immortal/

Video: ‘It was very humbling’ – Ricky Stuart on Hall of Fame nomination: https://www.nrl.com/news/2018/05/14/it- ... omination/

Re: Why Mal Meninga should be the next Immortal

Posted: May 14, 2018, 1:33 pm
by Love4Noa
That's a lovely little article to talk about his achievements.

What it doesn't touch on, and the clear marker of the fact he should be an immortal, is that players came to Canberra to play with Meninga.

Peter Jackson and Garry Belcher both came to Canberra to play with Meninga. The flow on effect that got the Walters boys to the club and the influence he had on the careers of guys like Daley and Stuart should be noted.

It is with clear memory that Daley entirely idolised Meninga during his playing days. The embrace of Meninga after scoring that try in the 94 Grand Final was a dude hugging his idol. The respect they had for each other gave fuel to the folklore that Meninga pulled up stumps in one of his last origin matches because Daley was the guy in defence and had dodgy knees.

The other thing that always gets me is Meninga was spoken as an immortal when he played. He was widely acknowledged as being an ornament to the game during the later years when he captained 2 Kangaroo Tours and broke most records for games and points scored at international level.

His playing record itself is enough to be an immortal.
His coaching record on top of that is a walk up start to be an immortal.
His influence on an entire generation of players demands he is an immortal.

I have zero faith in the NRL to make him an immortal.

Re: Why Mal Meninga should be the next Immortal

Posted: May 14, 2018, 1:49 pm
by BJ
Playing in 11 grand finals with teams that were weak before and after he left, is a strong enough case for me.

The guys a winner in everything Rugby League.

The other plethora of statistics should be enough in anyone’s book.