The origins of the NRL State Championship can be traced back to an idea from the Queensland media during the 1984 Brisbane Rugby League season when two club sides had agreed to play a one-off match.

[citation needed] The 1984 Brisbane Rugby League Wynnum-Manly Seagulls team was unquestionably Queensland's best, the team defeated a Southern Suburbs Districts Magpies side coached by Wayne Bennett and boasting names such as Gary Belcher, Mal Meninga, Peter Jackson, Bob Lindner in the 1984 Brisbane Rugby League Grand Final by a record 42–8 scoreline.

Many supporters north of the border believe they were also better than the 1984 Sydney Rugby League champion team the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.

The Brisbane media were so confident about the strength of this super Wynnum side that they suggested a challenge match between the Seagulls and the Sydney Premiers Canterbury Bankstown.

[citation needed] It was an idea liked by the QRL, but if the suggestion is that the NSWRL were the roadblock, Canterbury prop Peter Tunks said the Bulldogs players and officials were just as keen to make the game happen as their northern rivals.