Phillip Duke is a former rugby league

Rugby league

Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 player who was selected to represent the New South Wales Blues in game III of the 1982 State of Origin

1982 Rugby League State of Origin series

The 1982 State of Origin series was the first annual full 3-match series, between New South Wales and Queensland to be played under "state of origin" selection rules. This year the Origin concept was fully embraced, with no matches using the previous seventy-four years' residential-based selection...

 series.

Duke, playing for the Moree Boomerangs, was the first of three players in the Country Rugby League

New South Wales Country Rugby League

-2011 Tier 2 Championships:-History:Newcastle was the first city outside Sydney to start a league competition, being involved in the Sydney Premiership in 1908-09 and then starting their own competition in 1910....

 who were selected to play Origin without having played in first-grade competition (then the New South Wales Rugby League

New South Wales Rugby League

The New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...

). Duke earned his selection after playing for Country in the annual City vs Country

City vs Country Origin

City vs Country is an annual Australian rugby league football match that takes place in New South Wales between City and Country representative sides. The City side represents the Sydney metropolitan area...

 confrontation and he was placed on the wing for the third and deciding match of the Origin series. Although he scored the only New South Wales try in the game, Duke's performance was marred by a missed pass from Phil Sigsworth

Phil Sigsworth

Phil Sigsworth is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. He played primarily in the fullback position.-Playing career:...

. The ball intended for Duke went astray and Queenslander Wally Lewis

Wally Lewis

Walter James "Wally" Lewis AM is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach. Currently a commentator of the sport, he is widely regarded as the greatest rugby league player of all time...

 scooped it up, scored a try and won the game and the series for Queensland.

Duke later played two seasons with Western Suburbs Magpies

Western Suburbs Magpies

The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia...

, mainly as a winger.

Sources