Paul Gallen and Greg Bird plan on lifting the State of Origin shield of the first time. Picture: Gregg Porteous. Source: Gregg Porteous / News Corp Australia
GREG Bird is standing in front of 17 faces, choking back tears.
The room is quiet. Bird is glad he came prepared.
In his right hand, the NSW tough guy holds scribbled notes he had penned all alone the night before.
Bird might be one of the most ruthless players ever to pull on a Blues jersey, but beneath the purple bruises he wears each week and the hardened exterior is a 29-year-old, who given the occasion, can sob like a six-year-old.
Somehow, the heavy lump in his throat is keeping the tears from spilling free.
Bird isn't sure why NSW coach Laurie Daley had asked him to present the jersey to every player just hours before kick-off to Origin I three weeks ago in Brisbane.
He didn't even consider asking why. He just said yes.
And so here is, inside a conference room of the Sofitel Hotel on the day of the game, offering a heartfelt, short sentence to describe how he feels about every player, before calling them forward and handing them their pride and joy — the NSW jumper.
"There was nothing funny, I didn't make any jokes. They were all serious,'' explains Bird, who missed Origin I due to suspension.
Greg Bird will leave everything on the field in Origin II. Picture: Gregg Porteous. Source: News Corp Australia
"I thought about saying something that would help the guys and give them something to think about, give them a little pat on the back and hopefully try to bring out the best in them.''
Eventually, Bird gets to his mate. Paul Gallen. The NSW captain.
The last speech Bird made for Gallen was a toast at the Cronulla skipper's wedding two years ago.
But instead of a schooner, Bird is holding the jersey Gallen will wear in one of the most courageous victories in NSW Origin history.
"G-Train: Fearless leader. One of my best mates, he's always there to help you. Keep an eye on this guy during the match, take a leaf from his book and we'll beat these c….''
Telling this story to The Daily Telegraph in the days prior to tonight's blockbuster in Sydney, Bird still gets emotional.
The NSW forward admits that he and Gallen have been through so much together over the past 12 years.
They arrived on the Origin scene virtually together.
Both with a thud.
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Gallen made his NSW debut in game three of the 2006 series, a match that Queensland won in Melbourne 16-14 on the bell.
Bird's debut came in game two of the 2007 series. He was named man of the match.
Teammates at the Sharks, they were quickly tagged the "Bruise Brothers" when they came together for NSW such was their fearless desire to inflict pain on the Maroons.
Immortal and NSW selector Bob Fulton quickly declared the pair as the future of NSW.
Eight years on and they are the heart and soul of the team and the state.
But much to their great despair, all of their incredible heart and passion has resulted in no Origin glory. The only bar-room photo they share is a picture of the close mate's holding up last year's World Cup.
In the eyes of two of rugby league's fiercest competitors, it's not enough.
"At Cronulla, when me and Gal played together, we were close a couple of times to grand finals,'' Bird says.
The Blues will follow the lead of inspirational captain Paul Gallen. Picture: Gregg Porteous. Source: News Corp Australia
"But then with the Origin career we've had and the dominance Queensland have had in our era, there's not a great deal of silverware floating around.
"We've got the World Cup and that's probably about it, between us.
"So this is an opportunity, victory means a lot.
"When you put in so much effort and me and him tend to play a similar style of football, playing as hard as you can and leaving everything out on the paddock, to come away after 10-15 years with nothing, it is hard."
"But we've got an opportunity now. It's not our right that we get this on Wednesday, it's something we have to work towards.
"I think we're in a position where finally we can have something.''
Gallen still remembers the feeling after tasting his first Origin defeat in 2006.
The rookie bench forward that year recalls the blank stares throughout the dressing rooms and the question that went unanswered from the Blues' most high-profile player, Willie Mason, who asked: "Is this like losing a grand final?''
That awful feeling is what will drive the captain on Wednesday.
The irony can't missed then, as
Bird reflects on what will propel him towards ending eight years of Origin agony.
Like his best mate Gallen, he will use the memories of shattered faces last year to steel him for the most important match of his life.
"Last year was hard, I thought that was the best opportunity we had to win it,'' Bird says.
"We probably weren't at our best and we lost and over the eight years, I think I've been
involved in six of them, it was probably the hardest to stomach.
"We're in the exact same position where we are today. Leading 1-0. We need to be better.
"A lot of those guys that played that game can take the feeling afterwards, the emptiness, that we felt after the game and that opportunity we didn't take.
"We can't let that happen again. Gal won't want to let that happen again.
"Instead of hugging each other in defeat, we want to be hugging a shield together.''
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