Why Moore's debut is Origin's greatest endurance feat
Billy Moore's famed "Queenslander" chant will outlive all and sundry as one of State of Origin's most enduring images.
To sit right alongside it is statistically the best endurance effort from a player during the past three decades in the interstate arena from the back-rower, the first time he stepped out in a Maroon jersey no less.
NRL.com Stats, in conjunction with Powerade, has crunched the numbers from every Origin match over the past 30 years to come up with a Powerade Player Impact Rating for every player's performance.
Moore's 1992 Queensland debut won out as the biggest impact by a forward in Origin history while Blues legend Brad Fittler lays claim to the best 80-minute attacking influence, putting on a clinic in the record-breaking 56-16 drubbing of the Maroons in game three of the 2000 series.
NRL.com's Powerade Player Impact Rating shows Moore, who finished a storied career with 17 Queensland appearances and 211 games for his beloved North Sydney Bears, was built for Origin from the outset.
Moore always reckoned he "floated" onto the hallowed Suncorp Stadium turf. When the lock got out there in game two of the 1992 series, the then-21-year-old churned through a gut-busting 57 tackles and 22 carries for 150-plus metres.
With the only try in a 5-4 Maroons win, which came despite Martin Bella and Peter Jackson being sin-binned for backchat, Moore's overall statistical workrate score trumps all comers in a seriously impressive list of big men.
Click on the post above to view a drop-and-drag 360-degree display of Origin's most powerful performances
Comparing the apples of Moore's ironman efforts with oranges like Andrew Fifita's 2017 heroics will always raise eyebrows, but in this instance the endurance efforts are calculated by the defensive work rate and tackle effectiveness, with total runs and metres per run also weighing in.
Right up there with Tenterfield's favourite sporting export are astounding performances from fellow Maroons stalwart Nate Myles and NSW workhorse Craig Fitzgibbon – who played every minute of the 2005 epic series opener that went to extra time.
The Herculean 2012 defensive loads of Paul Gallen (game three, 51 tackles, 19 runs for 148 metres) and Robbie Farah (game two, 61 tackles without a single miss) also rate high in the impact stakes for big men.
Gallen's extra work in defence in that 21-20 series-deciding loss just shades his most famous effort in the Origin arena, an 80-minute powerhouse showing at prop in Origin II, 2011 that featured 46 tackles and an almost identical output with ball in hand.
When it comes to those with the Steeden on a string, Fittler's field day in what was a long-standing record Origin win comes out on top.
The influence of an offensive game has been determined with tries, try assists and the ability to break the line and send teammates through it all taken into account, as well as an overall work rate.
With four try assists, as many line break assists and the lead role in a nine-tries-to-three thumping to round out the 2000 series delivers Freddy an overall attacking score of 62.
Just as Moore played the house down on debut, so too did the surprise runner-up for impact among the backs – Brett Hodgson's stunning 2002 entry to the Origin arena.
With five line breaks, 23 runs and a four-pointer contributed to a hefty work rate total (42 points) and attacking output (52 points) – only for Gorden Tallis to rag doll the former Eels and Tigers fullback into Origin folklore the very next game.
