North Sydney Bears
With multiple clubs vying for his services, Pickup decided on North Sydney because they were the team that had suffered the longest drought between premierships, and he wanted to make a difference. His impact was felt immediately and although Norths fortunes improved, they still hovered around the middle of the ladder during Tim's short time as a Bear from 1972 to 1974.
Personally he achieved instant success at the representative level, after playing for City firsts and New South Wales he made the Australian team, alongside Norths team-mate George Ambrum. Tim played two Tests against New Zealand in 1972 partnering Tommy Raudonikis in the Halves, with Bob Fulton in the Centres, a combination which was regularly considered by selectors over the next four seasons. Pickup then toured with the 1973 Kangaroos and played in 4 Tests and 14 tour matches. He generally played at Five-eighth, though he was selected at Halfback in the 2nd Test against France. Tim's last Test match as a North Sydney Bear was against the touring Great Britain side in 1974 series. He was named the Bears player of the year for the 1973 and 1974 seasons.
Frustrated at his club's policy toward's player retention and its lack of ambition in recruiting star-quality players, Pickup decided it was time to move on and signed a massive (for the day) 5-year deal to Captain Canterbury-Bankstown, who were known as the Berries at that time.
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