It was one of the greatest rivalries of the 90s…Mark ‘Spudd’ Carroll vs Paul ‘The Chief’ Harragon.
Two tough, hard and respected NSW and Australian team-mates, but with a pure hatred for one another.
There were some fierce hits and brawls between them, but none more so than the Friday night blockbuster at Marathon Stadium in 1995.
Manly Moments: Spudd vs Chief
In front of a record crowd of 32,642 and trailing Manly 28-14 early in the second half, Carroll returns Andrew Johns’ kick restart with Harragon, the Knights’ captain, charging towards Carroll to ‘rattle his cage’.
Harragon mistimes his tackle, hitting Carroll with his chin as both players go flying in the air.
With Harragon out cold, Carroll walks over, and says ‘is that the best you can give me?’
Geoff Toovey, one of Manly’s toughest and greatest players, captained the Manly side that night under the coaching of Bob Fulton.
“There was a big build up to the game and ‘Spudd’ tended to buy into those emotional situations more than other people,’’ Toovey said.
“He was quite pumped. He thought it was his job to be the Manly enforcer and he probably took things a little bit too literally.
“Bozo said to him ‘I want you to be the enforcer and to show your dominance’.
“And whilst it was probably an unfortunate collision because no one wants to see anyone concussed, ‘Spudd’ stood over him and said that now famous line.
“I later heard ‘Spudd’ say in an interview that ‘he was the hunter and (Harragon) was his prey’. He copped some for that (laughing).
“Spudd was no more fired up than usual that night. He took his rugby league seriously and he likes to rant and use his emotions.
It’s how he played the game and how he got the best out of himself.
Geoff Toovey Manly Premiership-winning Captain
“Without that, he might not have been the player he was if he didn’t feel those feelings he had for the opposition the way he did.”
