Amid all the tears and cheers of the Blues finally ending Queensland’s eight-year Origin dominance on Wednesday night, a defiant Maroons outfit stood as one.
Huddled together in the middle of ANZ Stadium, Mal Meninga’s men linked arms in a strong showing of team unity as their rivals celebrated around them.
Tucked away in the Maroon mob was Newcastle's own Darius Boyd, who tells Knights TV the collective coming together was designed to build bonds ahead of the final game in Brisbane on Wednesday July 9.
“We just wanted to make sure that we didn’t drop our heads too low," Boyd reveals.
“We didn’t really let anyone down. Sure we didn’t get the win, but we’ve still got another game to go.
“We are a very close squad and team, the staff included.
“We’ve got a lot of people around us and everyone who comes into the squad is always cherished and loves being here.
“We really enjoy each others company and we look forward to playing together."
Queensland's Origin reign may be officially over, but Boyd says the Maroons will be determined as ever to salvage pride at Suncorp whilst also avoiding a whitewash in the process.
"We don’t want to lose three-nil, that’s for sure," he says.
"We want to give something to the fans and everyone that supports us, so we are definitely looking forward to getting back to Suncorp.
"It has been a great series and credit to NSW they played really well.
"A few things probably didn’t go our way, but I suppose we can’t take away from our effort.
"We put in a great effort and there is still another game to go."
Boyd looked certain to cross for a try in the first half of Wednesday's Origin, but was denied by some brilliant last-ditch Blues' defence.
Despite missing out on a four-pointer, the Knights star remains the equal highest try-scorer in Origin history alongside fellow Maroon Greg Inglis on 14 tries.
Both Boyd and Inglis will get a chance to surpass that mark when they line-up in Origin 3.
In the meantime, Boyd's immediate focus will be a clash against some familiar faces in the North Queensland Cowboys side at Hunter Stadium on Monday night.
"It will be good to play against a few of the (Queensland) boys actually," he enthuses.
"It’s always good to play against some of your mates.
"We need a win in Newcastle, so it will be good to get one on Monday night in front of a home a crowd."
Get your TICKET now and support your Newcastle Knights when they host the Cowboys at Hunter Stadium on Monday June 23. Gates open 4.30pm for NYC to kick off at 4.45pm before NRL at 7pm.
