This week we catch up with club legend Laurie Daley who was a part of the 1989, 1990 and 1994 Premiership winning sides.
During his 13 years at the club, Daley scored 87 tries and captained both Canberra and Australia.
Daley also won the 1995 Dally M Medal and was named the Raiders Player of the Year on five occasions.
Laurie Daley
Canberra Raiders #88
Appearances 244
What do you do for work now?
I work on the Big Sports Breakfast which is a radio sports program which is on from 5:30am to 9am every weekday.
What's your favourite memory as a Raider?
It would be hard to go past the 1989 Grand Final. That brought everyone together, it gave the town something to be proud of. It gave the town something to be known for apart from being a public servant town.
What did it mean to you, to wear the Raiders jersey?
It meant everything. Growing up I wasn't a Raiders supporter but I knew of the Raiders given the close proximity they were to Junee where I lived. When we played for the Canberra Raiders, we were able to establish our own DNA and what we wanted the club to be about. The club was only in its infancy when I arrived there.
Who was your favourite teammate?
I don't think I had one favourite teammate. I think there were plenty of them. We just had a really good team of guys who were humble, came from good backgrounds, were all hardworking and had no egos. The boys really didn't care about who was getting the credit, as long as we were winning and doing the best we possibly could.
Do you keep in touch with any of your former teammates?
Yeah I still keep in touch with a few of the boys. It's always good to run into them. The best thing about the guys is that although you may not contact them, when you see them it feels like you never left.
What was your funniest moment as a Raider?
Probably dropping the trophy off the back of a ute. It always gets remembered.
We were driving through the streets of Queanbeyan and I thought the guy driving was slowing down so I relaxed and took my arm off the trophy and then he accelerated again. When he accelerated, I felt myself going and I felt the trophy going. I didn't want to embarrass myself so I went to free my arms from the trophy and it fell out the back of the ute. I snapped the base off the trophy and it wasn't in particularly good shape!
Do you have any advice for any younger players?
Continue to work hard. Nothing in this game is easy and you've got to work extremely hard and be meticulous in your preparation. What you do away from training is probably more important than what you do on it if you want to be a professional footballer.
