‘I’m happy for him:’ Lobb on Ugle-Hagan’s comeback as Bulldogs pair joins Origin ranks

State of Origin bolter Rory Lobb has thrown his support behind Jamarra Ugle-Hagan’s Gold Coast comeback as Lobb prepares to settle a score with Bulldogs teammate Sam Darcy.

Perth-born Lobb and Western Bulldogs onballer Ed Richards are among the latest group of players to be named in next year’s State of Origin squads, making it five players from Whitten Oval who will take part in the February 14 clash at Optus Stadium.

Teammates Rory Lobb and Ed Richards will become opponents for one game next year.Credit: Jason South

Lobb will join high-flying Bulldog Aaron Naughton in WA colours, while Richards will play alongside captain Marcus Bontempelli and young gun Darcy for the Big V.

But before they turned their attention to a looming interstate rivalry, both Lobb and Richards acknowledged Ugle-Hagan’s return to the training track after the 2020 No.1 draft pick was lost to football last year.

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“It’s what he loves doing, and it looks like he’s enjoying himself on the Gold Coast - a fresh start,” Lobb said of his former housemate.

“So, yeah, I’m happy for him. He looks fit, he looks good, and hopefully, he has a good season.”

Richards said Ugle-Hagan’s decision to seek a fresh start in Queensland “probably was a good move in the end”.

“I think Marcus [Bontempelli] put it really well the other day when he was talking about it. It’s great for the game when Jamarra is up and going,” Richards said.

While Ugle-Hagan’s ability to resurrect his stuttered career will play out over the coming months, Lobb said he was now focused on squaring the ledger against Darcy in next year’s Origin return.

“[WA defender] Sam Taylor might want to have a go on him, but maybe I’ll play on him and try taking him out of the game,” Lobb said of the prospect of matching up against Darcy.

Former Docker Rory Lobb will renew a rivalry with now Bulldog teammate Sam Darcy in State Of Origin. Credit: AFL Photos

“We’ve had a couple of good battles out here already this pre-season, but last pre-season he got me, so I kind of owe him.

“Darc is a hard one to play on because you don’t know whether to sit in front because he’s so good on the lead, he’s got long arms, or play him from behind and try to only give him the lead up. A win is just nullifying every contest, I reckon. It doesn’t matter if I touch the ball.”

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Lobb was happy to support the revival of the State of Origin concept.

“We’ve been starved of it for so long, and we’ve been talking about it as players with the PA (AFL Players’ Association) for a long time now,” he said.

“Sam and I get pretty competitive out here, and, you know, we don’t like losing, so I’m sure that we’ll be cracking in as hard as possible.

“I’m out there to win the game. I don’t want to get beaten up on live television, so I’ll be going hard as I can.”

Richards said he did not expect players to be worried about injuries during the pre-season clash at Perth Stadium.

“There’s always the risk of injury anytime you step on the field,” the 2025 Charlie Sutton Medallist said.

Ed Richards is looking for to re-uniting with former schoolmates Matt Rowell, left, and Noah Anderson.Credit: Getty Images

“I guess people would be upset, probably from a supporter’s point of view, if you were to be injured in this game, but some things are just meant to be, aren’t they, so I’m not too worried about it.”

Richards said he was looking forward to lining up alongside former Carey Grammar teammates Noah Anderson and Matt Rowell.

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“I played school footy with Rowley and Ando,” he said. “When they were in year 10, I was in Year 12.

“They were probably better than me at that stage, but it’d be nice to play with them again. There’s a bit of history there.”

Richards said the Bulldogs had been working on elements of their defence since returning to pre-season training.

“We know that our attack and our offence is seriously potent, so it’s something that teams have got to focus on week in week out to try and stop us offensively,” he said.

“But we’ve got to just be better on defence all over the ground. We’re not helping our backs out at all.

“A lot of our backs have been hung out to dry in the media. You know, people are saying our defence is sub-par, but I don’t think it’s like that. I think it’s more our defence as a whole - all 18 on the ground.

“We believe we can get the ball back in our hands more often than not with some of our defensive stuff, and then we’ll be able to beat anyone.”

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