Matthew Ridge

Rugby league's super tough now.

It's just as tough, but...

Back then it was just as tough.

Guys were hitting just as hard.

Guys just as fast, just as strong, just as fit.

But there was all the other shit that was going on.

You know, the facials, the fucking gouges, the knees, the fucking, all that shit in the tackle that's like.

Yeah, that was the deal.

So when you got tackled, I can remember the second half kicked off in my first game and I caught it.

I thought, oh, fuck it.

I'll just take it back.

And I ran it straight back and I thought I was running between a gap.

And I wasn't the quickest fullback in the world, right?

But anyway, so I thought I was running between a gap and this straight line come down and I ran into Gavin Hatch.

who was an old school, he was a hooker, Les Davidson, who used to just hit like a fucking hammer.

And I ran between those two guys, right?

And all I can remember was like running straight between them and then just seeing my feet like just...

Well, parallel with the post right in front of me, and I just thought, that obviously smashed me.

And that was the last time I took the ball back from the kickoff ever.

I never did that again.