Humble Slater’s dream farewell
NEW Queensland skipper Billy Slater says it never once crossed his mind that he would one day captain his state, let alone do it in his final Origin match.
Speaking for the first time since he was handed the captaincy reins for Game Three at Suncorp Stadium, the retiring fullback said he had been left humbled by the chance to lead Queensland next week.
The opportunity for Slater came after Greg Inglis broke his thumb on Sunday, in what will be just the second time the veteran has captained a team across his entire career.
He led Melbourne in one game earlier this year following the suspension of Cameron Smith.
And it is because of his longtime teammate Smith’s presence that Slater felt he might never get the chance to be a captain, especially at the state level.
“To be perfectly honest, it’s never been on my radar,” Slater said of the captaincy.
“I’ve never been ambitious about being a captain for Queensland. I don’t know whether that’s just because I’ve always had Cameron in my team.
“I suppose my leadership has evolved as it naturally does for people in their career. My game doesn’t change, my approach doesn’t change.
“It’s going to be really special … There’s been some great leaders ( in) this team and I’ve been behind a few of them – the likes of Cameron Smith, Darren Lockyer and Greg ( Inglis).
“They’re great leaders amongst men and they’ve done a great job leading this state. Hopefully we can really get something out of this series.”
While Slater cannot finish his Origin career with a series victory – with NSW wrapping things up in Game Two – there is a lot of hope he can at least go out with a win in front of his home crowd.
The 35- year- old said he was soaking up everything his last Origin camp had to offer, starting with yesterday’s fan day in Hervey Bay.
But he was not going to make the last game about himself or his representative retirement.
He said Queensland had to get the win for multiple reasons, especially for those debutants like Andrew McCullough, Felise Kaufusi and Jai Arrow who are yet to experience a victory in the Origin arena.
“For a lot of these guys, it’s their first series,” he said.
“For me, it’s important for them to feel that winning feeling in Origin … This team here deserve something to take out of this year. That’s my goal.
“It’s going to be a memorable day for me either way but my focus is on playing well. That’s what I need to do for the team.”