After smashing Dave Tyrrell with one of the best hits ever seen on a rugby league field, Manly great Steve Matai did what most wouldn't have.
"He's a champion bloke. I apologised, I said 'Sorry mate, I sort of caught you on your blindside'," Matai said.
"He was a pretty cool dude about it and we had a good laugh afterwards."
Matai developed a reputation throughout his career as one of the most punishing defenders in the game.
The former Manly centre had the flu the night he blasted Tyrell into NRL immortality. He also gave away about 10cm in height and roughly 10kg in weight to the Souths forward.
Just minutes after his Sea Eagles teammate Jorge Taufua had caught Souths' Dylan Walker with a huge shot, Matai made the decision to rush up to catch Tyrell out and came miles in-field to get underneath the Souths prop.
"When you talk about bell-ringers this one is at the top of the tree. Everybody saw it coming except Dave Tyrell. Jorge Tuafua and Steve Matai are two of the best defensive outside backs you're going to see. That's a centre on a front-rower," Peter Sterling pointed out on Wide World of Sports' Breaking The Game.
Storm great Billy Slater, who faced off against Matai in several aggressive clashes against Manly, admitted the Kiwi international made a huge impression on his team and across the NRL.
"He'd make you think of him Steve Matai," said Slater.
"The whole week you're preparing to play Manly you know he is coming. He was lethal on that edge and to have Jorge Taufua in that side as well. You want to stay away from those two."
Matai was a silent assassin who wasn't much into trash talk. After that famous hit on Tyrrell he was quick to talk it down, a picture of humility as he analysed the bone-cruncher destined for rugby league folklore.
"I wouldn't read too much into it, he didn't see me coming," he said.
"I didn't really think at all, it was more trying to change the momentum of the game.
"They were starting to get a roll on and we dropped a few balls. I was just trying to inspire the team and hopefully I did that."
The hit was so popular it even made headlines in the US at the time, with US site Bleacher Report describing the hit as an "absolute monster".
Matai debuted for Manly in 2005 and went on to play in four grand finals, winning two in 2008 and 2011, before retiring in 2016.
from WWOS http://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/nrl-news-steve-matai-dave-tyrell-hit/20ea9393-93d8-4703-bcd5-de5f043c476e
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