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Retiring Parramatta champion Nathan Hindmarsh says his NRL retirement is yet to sink in and won’t until next year rolls around and the Eels start a season without him.
Hindmarsh and fellow club stalwart Luke Burt farewell the game against St George Illawarra on Sunday night at ANZ Stadium.
NSW and Australian representative Hindmarsh debuted way back in 1998 and Burt a year later, ironically against the Dragons at a packed out Olympic Stadium.
Hindmarsh is in the rare club of 300-game players, and Burt has more than 250 first-grade matches to his name.
The pair are both one-club players, a rarity in the modern game.
Parramatta are expecting a crowd in excess of 50,000 for Sunday’s match – with Dragons’ Test representatives Dean Young and Ben Hornby also playing their final NRL games.
Hindmarsh said he was looking forward to sharing in a lap of honour with good mate, Burt.
“I’m enjoying it – it would be much better doing it with a guy I played a lot of football with than doing it by myself,” Hindmarsh said.
“We’ve got a celebratory lap to do together and I’m going to enjoy it with Burty.
“But I don’t think it will (sink in) until well after we’re all finished up. I don’t think it will really hit me until the boys get stuck into a new season, they’re all running around in pre-season, trial games and the first comp games – that’s when it’ll really sink in.”
Burt joked that he had Hindmarsh to thank for all the hoopla surrounding their farewell – with t-shirts made up for the occasion.
“It’s good, I just ride on his coat tails. Half of you blokes wouldn’t be here if it was just me by myself. It’s good – it makes it easier to be going out with someone like Hindy where we’ve played so much together and we’re close family friends,” Burt said.
Hindmarsh said Burt was under-selling himself as a great of the club. The rock solid winger and fullback was a Country Origin representative and second highest point-scorer in Eels history.
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