Antarctica will turn a shade of green in 2025 as several Canberra Raiders fans working there vow to follow the entire season.

Mark Green and Cameron Griffin have been working in Antarctica since last October and will spend about a year there.

But that isn’t stopping either of the tradesmen from watching their beloved NRL team.

The pair even became friends through their shared passion for the Raiders.

Mark’s hope for the 2025 season is for Matthew Timoko to get the ball in some clear air, and for Hudson Young to get some ball out wide.

Cameron hopes that Jamal Fogarty stays injury-free “because we need a halfback”.

They reside at Davis Research Station, the most southerly Australian Antarctic station, located about 20 kilometres from the edge of the continental ice sheet.

It is named after Captain John King Davis, who captained vessels on Douglas Mawson’s and other Antarctic expeditions.

Another Raiders fan in the group is Louis Brown, who is en route home to Brisbane. Louis worked as a communication technical officer over the summer.

When the interview with CD took place, it was three degrees in Antarctica, cold and windy.

Mark has been a fan of the Raiders since 1982.

“I grew up in Canberra and was born and bred there, so you follow your team; it was non-negotiable,” he said.

“It was just the right thing to do, much to my brother’s disgust because he’s a Manly (Warringah Sea Eagles) fan.

“I’ve spent a lot of time in Queensland, and I was always a Raiders fan there.

“Back in the glory days when we won the premierships, I loved Bradley Clyde, Laurie (Daley), (Gary) Belcher and Jacko (Steve Jackson) and Laz (Glenn Lazarus), that whole era.”

Mark is working in Antarctica as a carpenter, where over the summer he built the structures that house reverse osmosis (which converts salt water to drinking water), and in the upcoming winter will renovate and re-fit the operations building.

They will watch the matches on a projector screen alongside other NRL fans at Davis Station, which include those who barrack for the Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm.

Mark said if the Raiders won any games, they would watch them again.

“I’ve saved a carton (of beer) if they make the finals,” he said.

“We’ll be doing well to make the semi-finals this year.”

This is Mark’s third trip to Antarctica for work.

“I love the place; I love the isolation and the brutality of the environment. I love the brutal weather until I’m out in it working,” he said.

Mark said he also enjoyed the camaraderie of working on the world’s southernmost continent.

“We’re all strange cattle in our own way, but we’ve all been handpicked,” he said.

“They say we’ve picked your best friends for the year; we hope we got it right.

“You come down here and they say you get ice in your veins; it keeps dragging you back.”

While Mark enjoys the job, he said it was hard leaving his wife, children and dog behind.

Cameron, who resides in Darwin, has been a Raiders fan since 1989.

“I turned the television on when I was five years old, fresh in kindy, and went for the green team,” he said.

“I’ve just followed the Raiders ever since.

“Mal Meninga was my hero and Laurie Daley as well. I’ve always been a one-club man.

“I grew up in Grafton then I’ve lived in Darwin for the last 20 years.”

Cameron has connections to Canberra with his mother, brother and brother’s family living in the capital, while his other brother is in Darwin and his sister in country Victoria.

He is working in Antarctica as an electrician maintaining instruments and electrical equipment.

This is his first time in Antarctica.

“We’re down to 24 expeditioners for winter, spread across four or five trades,” Cameron said.

“We have an in-house chef that keeps you well-fed.”

There are many facilities available, including a music room, a bar, a gym, a spa and sauna, a living area with various recreational activities available to play, a theatre and a hobby hut. There are also opportunities to ride a mountain bike or cross-country ski.

“We try to keep the activities and the exercise up. I think during the colder times it’s going to be inside,” Cameron said.

The station is surrounded by wildlife, including an elephant seal the “size of a small car and weighs about a tonne” who “rocked up” on the beach. They’ve also spotted a range of birds and different breeds of penguins.

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