Remembering This Classic NRL Warm Up Where Teammates Slapped and Fought Each Other

The NRL recently shared it on their Instagram Reel, and it just reminded us of how bloody good it is!

Modern-day rugby league fans were given a little taster of how players used to hype themselves up before games back in the day - and it's absolutely brutal.

For anyone who hasn't seen the iconic footage from 1979, it basically shows Western Suburbs Magpies legend Tommy Raudonikis warming up in the dressing rooms by slapping a teammate - before copping a big, open-palm slap himself.

Incredibly, the classic video is cut short when two Magpies players start having a tear up in the background.

Raudonikis hilariously pauses his pregame routine to break up the fight before head coach Roy Masters gets control of the situation by addressing the team.

"The face slapping warmed our faces up, and got us in the right frame of mind. As players we accepted it unconditionally," Raudonikis told the NRL.

"Sometimes it got heated, like when Les Boyd and Ray Brown got carried away. They got stuck into each other actually... but they went out on the field and away we went."

Raudonikis, who he went on to play 202 first grade games at half-back for the Magpies between 1969 and 1979, will forever be known for the infamous face-slapping moment.

Check out the legendary clip below!

Topics: Rugby League, nrl, Australia

Max Sherry

Max Sherry is a journalist for SPORTbible Australia. After migrating Down Under from London as a teenager, he instantly fell in love with Aussie sport and its culture. From NRL to AFL, cricket to rugby — you name it, Max watches it (with a beer in hand, of course). During his time at Fox Sports, he worked in the football department covering the Premier League, A-League, Socceroos and Matildas. Born a stone's throw away from West Ham's training ground, Max is obviously a die-hard Liverpool fan.

@maxysherry