I thought I trained hard and got bigger. The thing that grabbed us when he first came was how super fit he was,” Roach said.“He was the only reason - we had a good team - but he turned us into a grand final team.“When he got the football there was always something happening.”Roach also named his best mate Paul Sironen in the backrow and former club captain Wayne Pearce at lock, as well as the legendary Arthur Beetson at prop.“There was only two forwards ever to go on three Kangaroo tours, and (Sironen) was one of them, so you can imagine what a great player he was.”A NOTE ABOUT RELEVANT ADVERTISING: We collect information about the content (including ads) you use across this site and use it to make both advertising and content more relevant to you on our network and other sites. They fly around with Mal Meninga, Laurie Daley, Gary Belcher, but their forwards leave a lot to be desired. "Ending his career after the history-making 19-14 win over the Tigers in extra time would have guaranteed a perfect end to Lance's playing days but once the days of celebrations subsided, he had a rethink. New never used 2 Balmain Tigers Coolers As the Late great Laurie Nichols would have said "Black and Gold ..Never Fold !! " Balmain legend Steve “Blocker” Roach has named his all-time Tigers team. "I spent about six weeks there and got fit again to come back, thank God. We were certainly underdogs and first-timers. "We looked at that [1990 grand final] game as a way to prove that 1989 wasn't a fluke and we worked hard in 1990 to do it again, which was pleasing.
"I was fitter than I'd ever been and knew the game better than I ever had. "Mal was captain when he came back after the 1989 [Origin] series but I still get asked if I was captain for the season and I say yes I was … although it was for only about three weeks," Lance recalled with a laugh. I thought, 'shit, I'd better do the same. Canberra’s 1989 grand final clash with Balmain is rightly remembered as one of the greatest, if not the best, in the history of rugby league.But for veteran forward Dean Lance, just being at the Sydney Football Stadium on September 24, 1989, was a massive achievement after he went from starting the season as Raiders skipper to not only lose the captaincy but also his place in first grade.Although Mal Meninga retained the captaincy for the rest of the season, tellingly he asked Lance to join him on the podium as soon as he was awarded the premiership trophy to acknowledge his efforts in also leading the Green Machine to their first title.Lance was due to retire that day but had a rethink, along with ageless winger John Ferguson, and the two former Newtown Jets extended their careers into 1990 and retired with another grand final victory, this time an 18-14 triumph over Penrith.Earlier that season, what was going to be his final season looked like ending in the reserve-grade ranks.He was dropped by coach Tim Sheens after the Raiders lost in round 10 to Newcastle and returned three weeks later via the bench and then regained his starting role the following match.Like their veteran back-rower, the Raiders were in the middle of a mid-season slump but they peeled off five wins in a row to sneak into the finals in fourth place before becoming the first team to lift the trophy from that position in the playoffs with another four straight victories. "They have a class backline that got them out of trouble tonight. Tune into our new show Fox League Live on Channel 502 every day at 5pm and on Saturday at 3pm. Complete list of Balmain Tigers players. One of the most memorable grand finals in rugby league history, in 1989 the Balmain Tigers were heavy favourites to beat the Canberra Raiders. I was watching more so than doing as a captain. "It was the first time I'd been dropped in a team for fitness. I got back to 90 kilos and could run all day. Details of Balmain Tigers in the NRL 1999 season. Remember the glory days and pay homage to your clubs history in the Balmain Tigers 1989 Retro Jersey.Authentic reproduction of the jersey from 1989, with an embroidered Tigers team crest and sublimated sponsor logosThe jersey is more loose-fitting than modern jerseys so drop down a size if you want a tighter fitManufactured by Classic Sportswear When there were things that needed to be done in the game I wasn't putting my hand up. "I'm glad I decided to play on another year because I went on to captain Country against City in 1990. We were there [on grand final day] in 1987 and learnt a lot of things, not to celebrate too early and to celebrate after you put the hard work in.