Australian soldiers, PNG and an unnamed trophy: The true origin of State of Origin

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The first-ever State of Origin game actually took place in Papua New Guinea, a timely discovery given the NRL is considering handing a license to the Pacific nation.

A long-forgotten trophy, hidden just a stone’s throw from Brisbane’s Caxton Hotel, is set to forever change the way we think about the origin of State of Origin.

“The significance of it is it changes our view on how State of Origin started and where the concept came from,” renowned rugby league statistician, author and historian David Middleton said. The unnamed trophy that was the prize in the 1945 “Interstate Rugby League Series” in PNG, believed to be the first-ever State of Origin game.The trophy was made from a 120mm Japanese Naval shell casing with handles either side, mounted on a three-tiered wooden base secured by a large six-sided bolt in the middle. It contains the names of the players and was engraved simply with: “Interstate Rugby League Series, Bougainville”.

 

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