In 1991 after Penrith won the NRL Grand Final, Royce Simmons uttered the words: 'I hope to have schooner with every one of you tonight some time'.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
31 years later and the Penrith Panthers legend is still paying the price for that moment as he walks from Gooloogong to Penrith, raising money and awareness for Dementia Australia.
Two days into the walk, and the cries for a beer are still being heard.
"People have been yelling out the window saying you owe me a beer and they've got it all wrong, they owe me a beer," he laughed.
"I can be anywhere in the world and someone will yell out I owe you a beer.
"As far as Penrith went I think I've done them three times each, I've honoured that, I've got to retire and give that away."
READ ALSO:
On Wednesday, Royce's Big Walk reached Carcoar as Simmons was joined by fellow rugby league legend Terry Lamb and paralympian Kurt Fearnley.
All three men were designated their own sheep to sell with proceeds going towards Dementia Australia and a local icon was responsible for bringing the crew there.
"My old mate Badger (Errol Babbage) out here has a gimmick where he rips people off, I think he sells them one sheep about fifty times over, then he throws a heap of money in my pocket and I give that to Dementia Australia," Simmons joked.
"So if you see any of the cockies not doing too well, blame Badger."
With thousands of dollars raised during the auction, Cowra-born Fearnley wasn't surprised by the generosity of people in country towns.
"It's pretty overwhelming the support Royce gets, you could see it in his face it was a bit of a surprise but I know these blokes, they're generous with this community," he said.
"It (the community) gave me so much over that first 10 years of wheelchair racing and that doesn't change - the heart and soul of the bush is mostly people looking after people."
Lamb, a Bulldogs legend, echoed the same sentiment.
"That's what this community is, everybody knows and helps each other," he said.
"That's what friendship is, I met Royce in the state of origin team in the early 80s, went on tour in '86, and you become best friends when you live with each other for three months ... sport brings everyone together."
On the first day of the walk, Simmons, Brad Fittler and Andrew Farrar all made their way from Gooloogong to Cowra before Kurt Fearnley, Terry Lamb, Luke Goodwin and Paul Langmack joined the pack to go from Cowra to Woodstock.
Simmons believes his training has him in good stead but he's not quite sure about his mates.
"The training I've done before has been fantastic, I'm ready to go," he said.
"I'm a bit concerned about Paul Langmack and Terry Lamb, there's a big hill here. They both look like they swallowed a sheep, Terry still thinks he's as tall as me, he's got a bit of bad news there because he's not anymore, coming up that big hill they'll be seeing plenty of my backside."
Fearnley agreed the incline might present a challenge along the way.
"It's been a while since I've knocked out a few kilometres, I'm not sure how I'll go on the up hill, I might be climbing on his back but we'll get there," he laughed.
Royce's Big Walk will reach Blayney on Friday and donations can be made at roycesbigwalk.com.au.
HAVE YOUR SAY
- Send a letter to the editor using the form below ...