In a special moment, Quentin Pongia's family were on hand as the Canberra Raiders honoured the life of one of the toughest players ever to wear lime green.
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Pongia tragically died of bowel cancer in 2019, aged just 48.
He was one of four inductees into the Green Machine's hall of fame on Saturday night - with all of them playing in the Raiders' 1994 premiership.
Paul Osborne, Brett Hetherington and Noa Nadruku were all added to the 21 previous additions to the club's honour roll.
A who's who of Raiders royalty gathered to celebrate the club's 40th anniversary the day after the 14-4 victory over the Canterbury Bulldogs at Canberra Stadium on Friday night.
While Pongia obviously couldn't be there, his brother Brendon accepted the honour on his behalf.
Pongia played 74 games for the Green Machine, including the '94 36-12 grand final triumph over the Bulldogs, as well as 35 Tests for New Zealand.
At the time of his death, Raiders coach Ricky Stuart summed up Pongia as a player.
"Quentin is the toughest individual I have ever played with," he said.
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He was part of a fearsome Canberra front row with fellow New Zealander John Lomax, with Kiwiland a fertile breeding ground for Raiders.
After finishing his playing career in the English Super League, Pongia returned to Canberra to work as an assistant coach to David Furner.
Osborne travelled from Sweden, where he's studying the language, to accept his induction into the hall of fame.
He was brought into the '94 decider to partner Pongia in the front row after Lomax was suspended - despite having not played first grade for more than two months.
Following his premiership success, Osborne went on to become an independent member of the ACT's legislative assembly for six years.
Raiders coach Tim Sheens spotted Fijian flyer Noa Nadruku playing sevens rugby before bringing him to Canberra.
He enjoyed a stunning strike rate on the Canberra wing, scoring 73 tries in his 92 games for the Green Machine.
Nadruku was named the Dally M winger of the year on two occasions - firstly in 1993 and then again three years later.
Hetherington came off the bench in the Raiders' '94 premiership.
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Sunday: Canberra Raiders v Cronulla Sharks at Lang Park, 1.50pm.
David Polkinghorne
Covering the Raiders, Cavalry, cycling and racing, plus everything else that involves sport in the ACT, for The Canberra Times. Basically I love sport and watching it is a full-time job. Email: david.polkinghorne@canberratimes.com.au
Covering the Raiders, Cavalry, cycling and racing, plus everything else that involves sport in the ACT, for The Canberra Times. Basically I love sport and watching it is a full-time job. Email: david.polkinghorne@canberratimes.com.au
