July 3: King Wally plays last Test; King Arthur is honoured

On this day, Wally Lewis played his last Test for Australia, Artie Beetson's statue was unveiled at Suncorp and the famous 'TBA' rears its head in Origin.

1890

The player nicknamed 'The Rock of Gibraltar', fullback Howard Hallett, was born on this day. He played six Tests for Australia, 23 games for NSW, after making his debut for the South Sydney in 1909. He played 155 games over 15 years for the Rabbitohs. He was the eighth inductee to the NRL Hall of Fame in the centenary year (2008).

1920

A Sydney Cricket Ground crowd of 40,000 watches Australia win the Ashes in Australia for the first time. Captained by Herb Gilbert, the Kangaroos win the Second Test 21-8 after claiming the First 8-4.

1991

Wally Lewis' 34th and last Test is not a happy one as New Zealand thumps Australia 24-8 in an historic match at Melbourne’s Olympic Park. It is the first time the Kiwis and Kangaroos have met on Australian soil outside NSW or Queensland. 

1992

1998

Adelaide score one of the biggest shocks of the season with a 52-0 defeat of Balmain at the club’s new home ground of Hindmarsh Stadium in the South Australian capital. Centre Graham Appo scored two tries and kicked eight goals.

2005

For the decider in game three of the 2005 State of Origin series, the Maroons named a 16-man team, with a TBA in the 17th spot, enraging NSW fans. Tonie Carroll was on the comeback trail from injury and played the weekend game for the Broncos against Cronulla to prove his fitness before being drafted into the Maroons squad at the last minute.

2012

A bronze statue of rugby league Immortal Arthur Beetson is unveiled in the northern forecourt of Suncorp Stadium.

2019

Newcastle halfback Mitchell Pearce is sensationally recalled to the New South Wales line-up after Nathan Cleary fails to recover from an ankle injury ahead of the July 10 Origin decider.

This article contains information from the official records of NRL historian David Middleton.