Nathan Cleary wants to wear the NSW No.7 jersey for the next decade and few will argue with the ambitions of the baby-faced playmaker after his debut in a winning Blues team.
Cleary received a pre-game pep talk from some of the greatest players to have pulled on the NSW jersey – Brad Fittler, Andrew Johns, Danny Buderus and Greg Alexander – and did not disappoint in the middle of the MCG.
Job done: Nathan Cleary speaks to his father Ivan after his Origin debut.
Photo: NRL Photos
Now with his first match out of the way, Cleary wants to enjoy a long career on the representative scene.
"That's the plan. I'd love to do this for the next 10 years," Cleary told Fairfax Media.
"My performances will need to back it up and I'll need to keep getting better every game. But representing my state, that's a dream come true and I feel like everything in my footy career was leading to this day."
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Asked about Cleary on the day after the game, Blues coach Fittler said: "He handled it well and the best part about Nathan is the stuff nobody is looking at. He does that with his eyes closed.
"He's been injured but if you look at his two families, the Stuarts and Clearys, he's got that toughness of [uncle] Josh Stuart [who played with North Sydney] and the calmness of [dad] Ivan.
"He's a really good kid to coach. He took some knocks [on Wednesday] night but he's tough."
Just who should wear the NSW No.7 jumper has been debated for years and Cleary could not have timed his arrival any better given the retirement of the Maroons' brilliant halfback Cooper Cronk.
Cleary's famous father Ivan could not wipe the smile off his face in the sheds after the game as the pair embraced.
Told Cleary's value on the open market just soared again – and his hopes of luring him to the Wests Tigers from 2020 would cost even more – Ivan quipped: "He owes me".
"He did his job. He was busy early, he ran the ball a few times. The second half was end to end … he did his job in defence and kicked when he needed to," Ivan said.
"I thought [James] Maloney did a great job and took responsibility in the second half, which showed you their good combination."
Former gun NSW halfback Brett Kimmorley could not fault Cleary and hoped the Blues had finally unearthed a long-term spine with Maloney, Damien Cook and James Tedesco.
"Nathan is such a calm influence on his side at Penrith … he has a great kicking game, he challenges the line when he runs the ball and made all his tackles," Kimmorley said.
"That's what he did [Wednesday night] and the more you play, the more confident you get and the more you understand it."
Cleary's biggest moment came when he somehow got back to his feet after being pole axed by Greg Inglis.
As Fittler tried to describe that tackle after the match, "it was like a lunar eclipse".
"He got me a beauty. I'll end up on a few of his highlights reel with that one. That's what Origin is about," Cleary said.
Cleary had only two weeks to prove he deserved his Origin shot after recovering from injury.
He said the plan was to back up for competition leaders Penrith on Friday night against Canberra, along with fellow Blues Maloney, Reagan Campbell-Gillard and Tyrone Peachey.
Meanwhile, Tedesco said he had started to hit his straps the past month, and the MCG man-of-the-match performance would only boost his spirits again.
"I knew coming into this year I needed to play good footy to get this spot," Tedesco said.
"I came into this game confident and wanted to back myself. To play like I did is a big confidence boost for me."
Christian covers rugby league for The Sydney Morning Herald.
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