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The moment that blew Bremner away

It takes a lot to stop Jillaroos star Sam Bremner in her tracks.

Known for her breakneck speed and incredible footwork, the flashy fullback has made a career out of dodging defenders and scoring for fun.

But for once, Bremner was momentarily taken aback when a young boy told her that she was his favourite player in the game.

Appearing as she often does on Channel Nine's the Sunday Footy Show, Bremner and co-host Brad Fittler were speaking to a couple of up-and-coming youngsters who had been brought in to help during Freddy's Pass Off segment when one of them turned around and told her she was his rugby league idol.

Most kids pick players like Shaun Johnson, Johnathan Thurston or Greg Inglis, but this two-second grab shows the impact the women's game is having on rugby league in Australia. 

"It's so good that young kids – both boys and girls – not only watch women's rugby league, but now they also aspire to be like female footy players. That just goes to show what an awesome culture the NRL has," Bremner told NRL.com in the WIN Stadium grandstand ahead of Sunday's Women's Interstate Challenge.

"It's not just a little boy looking up to NRL stars because only boys can play the game at grassroots level or a little girl looking up to a female player, it's little boys and girls looking up to players – regardless of the gender – and that's an awesome step forward for rugby league. 

"They're the types of moments when I get in my car and drive home and I think 'this is why I play rugby league'. I can win games or I can lose games and I'm OK with that because it's a part of the sport, but it's moments like that that make me realise why I love playing the game so much."

A World Cup winner back in 2013, the star No.1 is preparing for one of the biggest games of her career when the Blues run out as titleholders for the first time against Queensland on Sunday. 

Queensland's 17-year stranglehold on the trophy came to an end last year when the Blues claimed a drought-breaking 8-4 win on the Gold Coast to give NSW fans a rare chance to celebrate an Origin victory. 

The Blues will head into this weekend's game with a star-studded side and plenty of confidence, but whatever you do, don't mention the word 'dynasty'. 

"Our coach Ben Cross has told us that we're not here to defend the title; we're here to win this year's title," Bremner explained. 

"I think that relaxes us a bit more because instead of thinking about what we did and didn't do last year, we're just thinking about preparation for Sunday and how we're going to execute. 

"It's such an important game and I think that's what's adding to how nervous and anxious I'm feeling towards this weekend because last year's win was such a career highlight alongside the World Cup win. 

"We worked so hard for it last year and I think we want it more than ever now because we know what it feels like to win. Last year we wanted to win so badly but we had nothing to lose because we'd never won before, whereas this time, we have that winning feeling and we don't want to lose ever again. 

"We're happily putting pressure on ourselves and we're really excited for this Sunday."

 

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National Rugby League respects and honours the Traditional Custodians of the land and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands we meet, gather and play on.

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