By Ian McCullough
July 5th 2009 @ 7:26am
Farah hands selectors Origin reminder with masterful display
Robbie Farah has given NSW selectors plenty to think about ahead of the State of Origin team announcement on Monday, the hooker delivering a masterclass in the Wests Tigers‘ 54-20 NRL demolition of South Sydney at ANZ Stadium.
With reports suggesting the 25-year-old rake will be dumped for the third Origin in favour of Bulldogs hooker Michael Ennis, Farah looked like a man on a mission, having a hand in eight of the Tigers’ 10 tries to breathe life into his side’s flagging finals hopes.
Wests Tigers coach Tim Sheens said it would make no sense to drop Farah from the Blues squad and believes his No.9 is still the best in the game.
“I have always said I wouldn’t swap Robbie for any other hooker and it is disappointing that it has been talked about him missing the third Origin game,” said Sheens.
“He had an outstanding first game and I don’t think any NSW player would say they had a great night in the second game but I would be disappointed if they change the side for not only Robbie’s sake but also the other players.
“That is a personal opinion, but I don’t know where we are going if we keep changing things after every game.”
Farah, who suffered from damaged ribs in the second Origin defeat in Sydney last month, said he was fully fit and ready to resume his battle with the Maroons, despite struggling with the flu ahead of the Souths clash.
“I have worked really hard to get to Origin but I am fine now, I am not even needling up any more and I hope to be there in Brisbane,” he said.
Sheens said the win, which included a first half hat-trick from bulldozing winger Taniela Tuiaki, showed his team’s finals aspirations were not dead.
He was also pleased with the performance of his new-look halfback pairing of Tim Moltzen and Benji Marshall but admitted he still needs to work on a settled partnership.
“It’s still an experiment, I still have to find a six and seven combo and I think at the moment it is the best option in the club and with Shannon Gallant putting his hand up at fullback I don’t see it changing between now and the end of the season,” he said.
Souths coach Jason Taylor slammed his side after their biggest defeat of the season and fifth consecutive loss.
Despite a treble of their own to winger Luke Capewell the Rabbitohs were rarely in the hunt – dropped balls, abysmal defence on the flanks and a try from the opposition’s kick-off amongst a litany of errors committed by a team that had been right in the finals hunt six weeks ago.
“It was a very disappointing performance in patches and not up to the standard required at this level,” Taylor said.
“The game was there for us take and not making smarter decisions – not forcing the pass and (getting) tackled – that cost us.
“The performance was simply not good enough.”
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