March 2: Super League whispers grow louder

On this day in NRL history: The early days of the Super League war, a Queensland favourite is born and Bon Jovi hit the big time.

1990

Queensland and Australia representative Josh McGuire was born. After making his NRL debut for the Broncos in 2009, McGuire played 194 matches in 10 seasons before switching to the North Queensland Cowboys on a four-year deal from 2019 onwards and then moving to the Dragons. On the rep scene, McGuire has played 14 matches for Queensland and eight for Australia. He has also played seven Tests for Samoa.

1994

Rugby League Week reports talk of a breakaway competition as relations between the Broncos and NSWRL continue to sour. What follows is a two-year battle in both legal courts and the court of public opinion before the game was split apart for the 1997 season. In that year, the Knights won the ARL competition and the Broncos won Super League. All teams were back into the same competition in 1998 under the NRL banner.

2001

Premiership favourites Parramatta defeat premiers Brisbane 26-18 at Parra Stadium. The Eels went on to make the grand final, suffering a 30-24 loss to the Knights in the decider. In the 29 matches they played - including finals - they scored 943 points, an average of 32.5 per match.

2011

NRL launches the "This Is Our House" theme song performed by US rockers Bon Jovi."' The song proves a hit, following on from the likes of Thin Lizzy, The Hoodoo Gurus, Tom Jones and, of course, Tina Turner. The league has alternated between official songs and fan-generated content several times over the last 30 years.

2021

The NRL shift the traditional June 30 player registration deadline to August 30 to allow clubs who suffer injuries during the Origin period to find replacements before the finals series. The decision is met with unanimous support from the club CEOs.

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