State Against State

April 21, 2005

As heard on Triple M's The Cage!: Click here to download (MP3, 2MB) or here to stream.

As you might have figured out, I'm a huge Rugby League fan. Grew up with it, dad coached it, used to play it, love it. And the game doesn't get any better than the annual State of Origin contest between Queensland (my home state) and New South Wales (the big-headed tossers from down south). The series is played over three games, usually two in one state and one in the other, each year.

During last year's series, which Qld regrettably lost, it ocurred to me that we'd been playing these games for 25 years, and I started thinking about the great moments in the games and what they meant to fans ... and the opening words of this song popped into my head. Since I was driving down a freeway at the time, this was inconvenient, but I managed to write enough of them down to make sense when I got home.

I'd had this blues-y AC/DC-ish sort of riff in my head for a while and started to play the song on this basis ... and the rest wrote itself. Then I got the idea of playing the song at the games (as the players run onto the field ...) so I thought it needed to finish with some sort of crescendo chant ... you can hear what I mean here (MP3, 1.8 MB).

I then wrote several verses for different purposes - two about the game, one pro-QLD, one pro-NSW. The words are below, but they're by no means finished or final. Let me know what verses you can come up with ...

I sent a version of it to the Australian Rugby League (the NSW Rugby League doesn't have a postal address on their website), the Qld Rugby League and Channel Nine's NRL Footy Show, just in case they agreed with me about how useful the song is ... I'll let you know how they react.

State against State

It all began in 1980. Artie belted Mick.
And every year it's been the same - passion laid on thick.
The skill, the speed, the mighty hits, the jersey worn with pride.
You feel the sound of the roaring crowd cheering for their side

Legendary feats are many. Who knows what they're worth?
Provided by the game they call the greatest game on earth.

It's all about where you come from.
Don't matter who's your mate.
It's State of Origin Rugby League: State against State.

(impartial second verse)
It's best of three, the homeground counts, the winner takes it all.
And every fan knows who will win before they've kicked a ball.
It's Cockies versus Canetoads, Maroons against the Blues.
It's fast and hard, don't give a yard, you can't afford to lose.

It's played by living legends, the greatest of the great.
So come and see the game let's hear you cheering for your state.

It's all about where you come from.
Don't matter who's your mate.
It's State of Origin Rugby League: State against State.

Chant:

Mate against mate. State against State.

Of course, this chant should build from moderately loud into stadium-trashingly loud. It should probably also feature the main vocalist encouraging the crowd to chant ?

(Qld Second verse)
The Cauldron and the Emperor, beneath the Queensland sun.
Big Mal and Gordy, Choppy close, our heroes, every one.
Remember Coynie's last-ditch try, and Alfie's magic feet.
We'll hold our breath for 80 minutes. Victory is sweet.

(NSW Second verse)
The pride of New South Wales, the men who wear sky blue.
There's Bennie, Turvey, Big MG. And Freddy's comeback, too.
O'Connor from the sideline, Loz could lead the way.
We'll hold our breath for 80 minutes, to win the shield today.

********************************

Please note This song is APRA registered: Work ID GW33826741, ISWC T-060762525-1. You can copy, reproduce and distribute any part of these lyrics for any non-commercial purpose as long as you acknowledge its source. If you make something good out of it, let me know and I'll consider adding it to this site.

If you perform it or broadcast it for any purpose, please let APRA know.

License this music for commercial use through Pump Audio

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License