Friends play it for laughs in NRL push
THEY competed against each other as schoolboys. They are vying for the same Cowboys jersey.
But the mateship between Mitch Dunn and Shane Wright has remained just that.
Lacing up for Proserpine State School as a 15-year-old, Wright recalls how Dunn used to try to get under his skin – never more evident than in a schoolboys final with Mackay’s Mercy College.
According to Wright, “Dunny didn’t do too much”. Ask Dunn: “Wrighty dropped the ball three or four times.”
Regardless, the relentless jibing gives away who earned the bragging rights.
“(There) was maybe one schoolboys final, which he won, he gives it to me all the time about that,” Wright said.
“Dunny’s a year younger than me so we didn’t play each other too much … I think he was a bit scared to play up in club footy against me.”
The pair have known each other since they were in their early teens and both agree their battle for an NRL career is made easier by each other’s presence.
Even when one missed selection, Dunn said that blow became sweeter in the knowledge the other had made the cut. And with the season’s round one team against the Brisbane Broncos to be selected next week, that sentiment will be tested in the coming days.
Wright and Dunn are members of a strong Mackay contingent paving a path to the NRL.
The backrow duo are joined in the Cowboys squad by fellow Mackay region product Reuben Cotter.
Last year when Cotter debuted against the Manly Sea Eagles the three men were all selected to play.
In that clash, Dunn sustained a shoulder injury that ultimately ended his season. But even still, he regards the match as one of the highlights of his fledging career.
“That’s the highs with the lows, it was so exciting to see him crack that,” Dunn said.
“It would be awesome to do that (play together), we got to do it once last year but it would be good to do it plenty more times.”
While Wright agreed it was a great occasion, he remembers it with some guilt.
Within seconds of entering the fray, Cotter crossed the white strip with his first touch of the football, only to be denied the try due to an obstruction penalty against his old Proserpine rival.
Despite the setback, the 23-year-old backrower is eyeing off their next opportunity to don the navy and yellow together.
“That call could’ve gone 50-50 but obviously it didn’t go the right way. I owed him a few beers after that,” Wright said.
“Earlier that year we all played Cutters together for a bit and then to all go through and play grade at the same time was a special moment.
“I grew up with those boys so it’s unreal to have them at training with me all the time.”