For a fair percentage of NRL fans, Teddy Swims would have been as anonymous as a suburban touch judge until last weekend.

But the “will he, won’t he make it” drama after the soulful American singer-songwriter with more tats than Bronson Xerri and Taylan May cancelled two performances in Hawaii when he fell ill had the league world talking.

Would he recover in time? Or would the NRL have to find a late replacement? What’s Barnsie up to?

Not that Swims – real name Jaten Dimsdale – is little-known around the world.

His 2023 hit Lose Control has had more than two billion streams on Spotify, he has almost 9 million Instagram followers and he was up for best new artist at the Grammys this year .

Even so, it was always going to be tough matching such previous NRL grand final star acts as

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