More than 2000 people gathered at Spooner Oval on July 29, 1966, to see the schoolboys of Forbes take on their counterparts from Papua New Guinea.
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The visitors - an 8 stone side as the sport was at the time played in weight divisions - had their stay extended especially to visit Forbes and arrived fresh from a test win over NSW.
The best of Forbes High School and Marist Brothers College students in the 8 stone division were selected to take them on, and the Advocate ran headlines for days in the lead up to the contest.
The Forbes boys were: 1 J Smith (FHS) 2 P Watts (MBC) 3 K McAtamany (MBC) 4 K McHugh (MBC) 5 L Spackman (FHS) 6 D Bindley (FHS) 7 D Goonrey (captain) (MBC) 8 K Archer (FHS) 9 A Constable (vice captain) (FHS) 10 G Brenner (MBC) 11 R Barton (FHS) 12 P Corliss (FHS) 13 M Kearney (MBC). Reserves J Scrader, P King, J Shine and J Hall.
Getting the "Papua New Guinea barefoot boys" to Forbes had been no small feat.
The visitors were known as the "barefoot boys" with their preference for playing in bare feet. While they didn't mind their opponents wearing boots - they actually felt it put them at disadvantage - Rex Barton remembers he had to play in sand shoes as a front rower in the clash.
The Advocate reported the PNG boys were actually making history - as the first representative schoolboy side of any sport to leave Papua New Guinea shores.
The tour was the result of a challenge issued by the New South Wales Schoolboys' Sports Association after their own tour, which included two Forbes players in Allan Constable and Peter Corliss.
Original plans included matches at Newcastle, Tamworth, Wollongong and Sydney, but the visit was extended by one week to allow them to visit Forbes.
"The agreement by Papua New Guinean officials to include Forbes in the tour came after almost a month of negotiations and representations by veteran Forbes rugby league man Mr Les Martin," The Advocate reported at the time.
"He was aided in his quest by ex-Forbes man Albert Dakin of Sogeri High School ... the official coach of the visiting Territory team."
When the big day came, thousands crowded to Spooner Oval for the big game.
The barefoot boys were 18-nil winners of the much-anticipated contest but The Advocate's scribe declared the score did "not reveal the extremely good moments of play by the Forbes team".
"At several times the whole Papuan team was defending behind their line and it was only sheer determination that kept Forbes out."
Papua New Guinea presented what the Advocate described as "unorthodox play" that wrong-footed the Forbes boys.
"The Forbes backs were fast, handled the ball well and played perfect positional football. They were upset by the unusual tactics of the Papuans.
"They did not rely on getting the ball fast out to the wingers, it was a matter of those players who happened to be in the clear and had the speed to make an opening that took the ball downfield.
"The Papua break was well illustrated several times by Itiki Ao, a second row forward, who flitted through openings like a wraith.
"The tackles of the Forbes defence were just like the branches of a tree reaching vainly for the wind.
"The Papuan boys made a speciality of flick up-end tackles.
"The attacker would be lifted and flicked up in the air over a shoulder or arm and then let go, the tackles were never followed to the ground, possibly because the man with the ball was guaranteed to be dazed anyway."
