Billy Slater says Jai Arrow is “still the same” fun-loving larrikin that Queensland know and love as the forward reunites with his Maroons brothers ahead of State of Origin I.
Arrow joined the Maroons for dinner in Parramatta after their arrival in Sydney on Tuesday, less than two weeks after his diagnosis with the insidious motor neurone disease (MND).
The former South Sydney, Brisbane and Gold Coast forward will also ride the Queensland bus to Accor Stadium for Origin I on Wednesday, and be around the team after the game.
“The boys get a kick out of seeing their mate ... and he’s still the same Jai,” Queensland coach Slater said on Tuesday.
“He’s obviously going through a bit, and his speech is failing him a little bit, but he’s still got the same sense of humour. I can tell he still loves being a Queenslander.”
Proud Queenslander Jai Arrow is back among his fellow Maroons after his MND diagnosis.
Across his 11-year first-grade career, Arrow played alongside 12 of Queensland’s 19-man team for Origin I at either state or NRL level.
Notably, he played all three games of Queensland’s 2020 series triumph against the odds, alongside incumbent players Kurt Capewell, Tino Fa’asuamaleaui, Lindsay Collins and Cameron Munster.
Memories of those days were in the air as Arrow caught up with his old teammates.
“Jai’s one of those guys that loves being around his mates, his teammates, a footy environment. He’s the life of the party, and that was no different last night,” Slater said.
For Slater and his Maroons staff, welcoming the 12-time Origin player into camp was never about using his fight against MND as inspiration for Origin I. It was about supporting Arrow and paying tribute to a career forced to a premature end.
“He’s giving a whole heap of inspiration but the decision to bring him in was not to inspire the group,” Slater said. “It was certainly to be around him and support him.”
“Us as Queenslanders, we certainly acknowledged our player 196 last night and celebrated what he brought in the Maroon jersey.”
At the same time, former Origin teammate Slater has been left in awe by Arrow’s desire to act as a role model in his fight against the disease.
“When people like Jai go through adversity and tough times, and they’re thinking about others and what they can do for others, that’s a pretty cool legacy to leave,” Slater said.
One such figure, AFL legend Neale Daniher, died on Monday, some 13 years after his own diagnosis with MND. In that time, Daniher became Australia’s most vocal advocate for the disease’s cure and treatment.
Melbourne local Slater witnessed the high esteem in which Daniher was held by the AFL community.
“If we can leave this earth with a legacy of other people being better people for your time here, well, job done,” he said. “I know Neale Daniher has done that. My love, support and condolences go out to the Daniher family.”
