Just before calling his first State of Origin game, in the seat that had for decades belonged to the great Ray Warren, Mat Thompson’s phone dinged.
Thompson was under as much pressure to perform as the players he was calling. Warren
, leaving him just one Origin call shy of reaching the magical 100 mark. The 40-year-old was tasked with filling the void.“There was a lot being said before the game, but I knew I had put in a lot of preparation for the call and had my bases covered,” Thompson said. “I’ve been in the media for 20 years in various roles and I feel there’s been a lot of hard work behind the scenes leading up to this moment personally. The key for me was conveying how superhuman the players are.
Thompson was part of a broadcast team that included James Bracey, Andrew Johns, Cameron Smith, Johnathan Thurston, Phil Gould, Darren Lockyer, Paul Vautin and Paul Gallen.“With Joey and Cam sitting alongside me, arguably the two best players for their respective states ever, I just wanted to give them as much time as possible to talk,” Thompson said.“It’s shaping up to be an incredible series and I can’t wait for the second game.
“He did a great job,” said Nine’s director of 9Now and programming, Hamish Turner. “It’s hard when you’re always going to be compared to a legend in your first outing. He delivered above and beyond expectations. We look forward to many more to come.”
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