He played 210 first grade games and nine Origins, but five glorious minutes in lime green are still special to David Barnhill.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After playing in a reserve grade decider which went to extra time, Barnhill sat on Canberra's bench for their 1990 grand final win over Penrith.
In his second year in the top grade and surrounded by superstars, the Wagga product didn't expect any game time and planned to lap up the best seat in the house.
But with five minutes left, Raiders coach Tim Sheens afforded him his place in history.
"It was a great buzz. I played probably ten games (14) off the bench that year but I didn't expect to get on. It was good to get those five minutes," Barnhill said.
"I remember we flew back to Canberra that night and there would have been 5000 people at the airport. The next couple of days in town were massive."
The Raiders would go on to win a third premiership in 1994, but have endured a tortorous 25 year wait for another crack at grand final glory.
They will start big outsiders against the Roosters, who Barnhill also played 58 games for, on Sunday.
Barnhill said he will be firmly in Canberra's corner and hopes his premiership teammate, Raiders coach Ricky Stuart, can get the job done.
"He's a pretty driven character. He was such a good player and he's obviously got the respect of his players, which is half the battle," Barnhill said.
"He didn't mind barking out order to this players, he was playing in a team with the legends of the calibre of Mal (Meninga) and Glenn Lazarus.
"He's one of the best players I played with. I played with a lot of superstars, but he was up there with the best of them.
"I have a soft spot for all the clubs I played for, but I'll be supporting Canberra on Sunday.
"Some play plenty (of grand finals), some play none. You can't be overawed and think about what could have been, you have to leave it all out there and I'm sure that's what they're being told by Ricky."
Meninga will blow the famous Viking Horn in front of 80,000 fans at ANZ Stadium in the biggest Viking Clap yet.
Barnhill is the only person to date to blow the horn outside of Canberra, when he was ambassador for the Raiders' round eight clash with Penrith in Wagga this year.
"It was a great buzz but it's going to be pretty special in that stadium with Mal doing it,"he said.
"We've got them (a Raiders game) for another year (at least) and they've been pretty smart, they've always got good juniors from this area.
"It's definitely a good breeding ground and it's smart for them to keep a foothold out here."
READ MORE
