Departing Knights prop Adam Cuthbertson never played in a State of Origin game at Suncorp Stadium.
So, for the 29-year-old England-bound utility forward, playing there against the Broncos is the next best thing, and he plans to savour his last appearance at Queensland rugby league's spiritual home with the Knights on Saturday night.
Cuthbertson, whose senior representative career peaked with two games for City Origin in 2011 and 2013, has been named on a five-man bench as Newcastle try to end Brisbane's finals hopes on home soil for the second straight season.
The ball-playing Avalon Bulldogs junior will leave the Knights at the end of the season to continue his career with Leeds Rhinos, having signed a four-year deal with the Super League heavy-hitters three months ago.
He has racked up 134 games in a nine-year NRL career that began at the Sea Eagles (2006-09) and included stints at the Sharks (2010) and Dragons (2011).
In six appearances at Suncorp with Manly, St George Illawarra and Newcastle, he won twice and suffered four losses – most recently in 2012, when the Broncos bucked the Knights 50-24.
He was sidelined with a groin injury when Newcastle beat Brisbane 26-18 in round 25 last season, which eliminated the Broncos from finals contention and all but secured the Knights' spot.
"I really enjoy going up to Brisbane," Cuthbertson said. "For a player who hasn't got to play Origin or anything, you sort of use that as that bit of rivalry, being from NSW and going up there to play.
"They get a good turnout, their fans are pretty passionate, and they're trying to fight for a semi-final spot, so we've got to come out on our game otherwise we could be in trouble."
Cuthbertson was Newcastle's most consistent forward behind NSW back-rower Beau Scott before he suffered a knee injury in a 38-18 loss to the Warriors on June 1, which ruled him out of the next five games.
Since returning, he has come off the bench in five straight games and would prefer to be playing more minutes than he is. He wants to help the Knights keep winning.
Because they won just twice in their first six games and then lost the next seven on the trot, the Knights have never really been in the finals race all year.
But they have won six of their past eight starts and Cuthbertson is determined to finish the season on a high note.
"So if Newcastle and the fans can remember me after I leave as leaving on winning terms, that will be great for me," he said.
"There's nothing worse than coming off after a loss. You have to deal with it the whole week after you lose, so whether it's by one point or by 50 points, you still feel terrible all week. So if you can come out of the game with a win, it makes the rest of the week much easier.
"The last two games have been great, and it's been unreal to see some kids come through and to see some good development come through the club, as well. They make the difference, they bring a lot of energy, and obviously we've had the two wins on the back of it, too."
Facing the Broncos, then playing home games against the Eels and Dragons, the Knights could have some say in which teams make the eight, but Cuthbertson said this was not his motivation as he lowers the curtain on his NRL career.
"You don't really look into it," he said. "It's nothing personal, you just want to go out there and win every weekend.
"Depending on how we play, we can ultimately knock teams out of the semis and whatnot, but it doesn't come down to that – we just want to win every week.
"We haven't changed anything dramatically at training, it's just starting to work on the field, obviously, and we're getting results from it.
"It's a shame it didn't work earlier on, but in terms of going forward and for next year and whatnot, we're in good stead and we're starting to really build on it."
