Angry Anderson is “pissed off” with the NRL for treating him like he’s dead after they failed to ask him to sing his sporting anthem We Can’t Be Beaten at State Of Origin I.

Instead, Shannon Noll and actor Ben Mingay belted out the 1982 Rose Tattoo hit in front of more than 80,000 spectators at ANZ Stadium crowd on Wednesday night.

“I wasn’t pissed off at Shannon for singing my song, I’m pissed off they didn’t pick me to sing my song,” Anderson told AAP.

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“I thought it was pretty shabby, pretty ordinary.”

Anderson, who was the frontman for Rose Tattoo, co-wrote the single with fellow band member Rob Riley.

He said he has was flattered that they chose his song but questioned why the NRL did not ask him to perform it.

“It’s kind of like saying get Guy Sebastian to sing Khe Sanh, get f***ked, you’re kidding,” he said.

“They want to use Can’t Be Beaten, I’m thrilled. Then they get someone else to sing it. Hello!

“It’s almost like they’re saying he hasn’t had a hit for a few years he must be dead.”

He said the NRL has often turned its back on original Australian artists and not just at State Of Origin time.

Anderson said his publishers have put forward We Can’t be Beaten and the sporting anthem Bound For Glory, which Anderson released as a solo artist in 1990, to promote an NRL season.

He said the code’s administrators have instead looked to US acts like Tina Turner and Bon Jovi to promote the code.

“We should be using Australians at Australian events,” Anderson said.

In 2011, the NRL used Bon Jovi’s, This Is Our House for its promotional campaign.

“Rugby League is a man’s man’s game. Bon Jovi are limp wristed.”

– AAP