Ross forced clubmate Robbie O'Davis onto the wing during the
1995 season. Ross, who signed a
Super League contract that year, joined
Brisbane while
News Ltd fought a battle through the courts to stage its rebel competition. The potent attacking later honoured his contract with the newly formed
Hunter Mariners in
1997. Ross represented
New South Wales in the Super League Tri-series competition, but following the demise of the Mariners and the re-unification of the game, quickly secured a contract with another newly formed club, the
Melbourne Storm as the first player signed by the club. A great start to the
1999 season saw Ross chosen for the
New South Wales rugby league team. In the second match of
1999 State of Origin series, Ross scored the fastest try in Origin history when
Ryan Girdler sent him over in the corner from the second tackle of the match. Later that year, Ross played at fullback for Melbourne in their historic
1999 NRL Grand Final victory and was catapulted into the
Australian Test team. After making his debut in the first match of the
1999 Tri-nations series, a 24–22 loss to
New Zealand, he was replaced by
Darren Lockyer for the remainder of the tournament. Having won the 1999 Premiership,
Melbourne Storm contested in the
2000 World Club Challenge against
Super League Champions
St Helens R.F.C., with Ross playing at and scoring two tries in the victory. Ross started the
2000 NRL season in superlative form. He scored 9 tries in 13 matches and retaining his position as New South Wales fullback, but was ruled out with a knee injury that was more serious than first thought. He was also awarded the
Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australia's international standing in rugby league. After being sidelined for the season, Ross returned in
2001 only to be hampered by chronic hamstring trouble. During 2002–03, matches were kept to a minimum, where Ross spent lengthy amounts of time on the sidelines with hamstring, knee and back injuries. He retired just before the start of the 2004 season at only 29 years of age, after it was revealed he had a
bulging disc in his back. ==Statistics==