The Blues still have the passion for Origin
Roar Rookie By Truck1984, 11 Jan 2012 Truck1984 is a Roar Rookie
- Tagged:
- New South Wales, NRL, NSW State of Origin, Rugby League, State Of Origin
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Some may say it’s too early for an NRL blog, since it’s 51 days till the NRL season kicks off, so it would be way too early for a State of Origin one since its 134 days till the first game…
But it’s not for this New South Welshman!
Going into the 2012 series, having lost six in a row, you may wonder why I am so excited about it. Yes, I am excited, but am more pissed off at this notion that we don’t have “passion”, or that we don’t have “it”.
Billy Moore, famous for his chant of “Queenslander” on the way to the field in 1995, is quoted as saying: “Passion is something ingrained in Queenslanders. Each year, we go out there with something to prove.”
Wow, Billy, that’s deep!
Did you learn that while playing for NSW in the under 17’s?
I’m not here to question the rules of eligibility for state selection, that’s a whole other discussion, but I find it hard that a NSW born and junior representative is telling me that Queenslanders have more about passion than me.
NSW dominated interstate football before State of Origin. I understand the hatred that Queensland born players, that were made to represent NSW, was the key to State of Origin success. It was used in the ’80s and ’00s as they dominated NSW, and they continue to use it for motivation to this day. NSW doesn’t have that hatred like Queensland. But hatred does not equal passion…
Do you think that every player that pulls on a blue jersey in the middle of the season doesn’t have passion? I’d love to see that question asked of current players like Greg Bird, Beau Scott, Mitchell Pearce or captain Paul Gallen.
Ask good ol’ Mick De Vere if taking a staple gun to the head so you can continue playing, means you have no passion and see what response you get.
Only two props have ever played the full 80 minutes – both NSW players. No passion there? I always hear that Dallas Johnson has passion because he suffered a concussion, and played on to make 25 more tackles.
Sure that’s gutsy, but is it more than a player, Gallen, playing in arguably the toughest position in SoO, making 234 yards and 32 tackles, in the full 80 minutes?
If so, why? And why is it more “passionate”?
As a NSW fan looking over the last few series, I start to see that Queensland’s passion and hatred is turning into arrogance and ignorance.
To me, it’s reflective of what Queensland saw in NSW all those years ago, and it makes me think that, while I know for a fact that NSW has passion, that they have turned this period of arrogance from Queensland into hatred.
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January 11th 2012 @ 11:35am
Jaceman said | January 11th 2012 @ 11:35am | Report comment
As Paul keating said, if you are an Aussie and dont live in Sydney you are camping out meaning Sydney is the place to be. Whether be all the head offices, Bi-centennial, Olympics (overlooking the 56 Games) Sydney thinks it has it all. Such smug arrogance gets up peoples noses especially Queenslanders who think they have the real Australia. So inevitably they play with more passion, hate anger intensity (or mixture therof) because it means more to them. Wayne pearce once said when he was playing that it seemed like SOO was put on for Qldrs because they had something to prove. Remember the lack of interest when Johns and NSW dominated so much that they managed to get Folau, Inglis (NSW born) to play for Qld and bought back Tonie Carroll after he p[layed for NZ to try to even up the score. I think its even now!!
January 11th 2012 @ 12:25pm
WoobliesFan said | January 11th 2012 @ 12:25pm | Report comment
When NSW supporters start defending the “passion” of their side, you know they’ve already been defeated.
Passion, schmassion, pride, ticker, blah blah blah blah……it’s all meaningless……everyone realises it’s only about one thing and that’s that this QLD team is once in a lifetime….you can’t compete or defeat them across 3 games…..only once Slater, Smith, Thurston, etc get old and weary is when the scales will be balanced….until then, it’s wishful thinking and nothing will bring the Sheild back across the border.
I predicted 8 series in a row.
January 11th 2012 @ 1:30pm
Hoy said | January 11th 2012 @ 1:30pm | Report comment
In QLD, the origin players etc don’t have to plead with crowds to turn up. In NSW, they seem to do so. Why?
I fear every year for the QLD dominance. I just don’t think it can go on, but then each year it seems to. It has been helped by massive blunders in selection, but also by the amazing team QLD has right now.
Farrah and Ennis are not Smith by a long shot.
Pierce is not Thurston by a mile.
Giddley, the captain from the bench and fullback for so long, is not Slater by a mile. To by honest, Boyd is possibly the number two fullback in the game right now, and he is on our wing.
Noone playing over the last few years is close to Lockyer.
Ricky will eventually win for New South Wales. In doing so, he will be hailed as a god. Simple fact is they have to win eventually. That is what will upset me the most. Having been beaten for so long, the team that eventually beats QLD, will then be hailed as the best ever.
January 11th 2012 @ 1:35pm
Gaz said | January 11th 2012 @ 1:35pm | Report comment
I recall an international match a few years back where Australia were down with minutes to play and Gus Gold commented “we’re still a chance because their are Queenslanders in the side” – Truck, maybe you should ask him what it’s all about!
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January 11th 2012 @ 2:17pm
Ben Carter said | January 11th 2012 @ 2:17pm | Report comment
Hi Gaz – didn’t Allan Border once make the same quip to Dean Jones during the latter’s heat-wave insanity double-ton in India some 25 years ago? Something about if Deano wasn’t hard-nut enough in those conditions, at least he knew he could count on a Queenslander? (the next man due in was Greg Ritchie, I believe). Whether Greg could’ve coped any better was probably a moot point at the time to AB, it was the state-rivalry thing that jeed up Jonesy and boy did he go on with it that day!
January 11th 2012 @ 2:39pm
Jaceman said | January 11th 2012 @ 2:39pm | Report comment
Border of course was born in nSW and only moved in his early twenties – is there again only one game in Sydney because there is one in melbourne??? It should be closer without Lockyer but still Qld are red hot favs..
January 11th 2012 @ 2:43pm
Ben Carter said | January 11th 2012 @ 2:43pm | Report comment
Hi Jace – According to the Australian Sports Tours website…
Game 1: Wednesday 23rd May in Melbourne
Game 2: Wednesday 13th June in Sydney
Game 3: Wednesday 4th July in Brisbane
I’m no rugby league brainiac, but I’d like to see the New South Welshies get up – if only for the good, even-handed, overall health of the competition itself. Although I’m sure Queenslanders would disagree with me!
January 11th 2012 @ 4:56pm
Todd Slater said | January 11th 2012 @ 4:56pm | Report comment
I think it says a lot about NSW mentality that the bloke who wrote this article is talking about passion in NSW in January….!
I would have thought being on the end of six straight series losses would be motivation enough, to get the passion running…?
Queensland have all they need for this year, Artie Beetson’s recent death will be a massive motivation as will Thurston, who will be desperate to step into Lockyer’s shoes & leave his imprint on the series.
January 11th 2012 @ 6:38pm
GoddyofAus said | January 11th 2012 @ 6:38pm | Report comment
All I’m seeing here is excuses. I think it is rich for a NSW fan to criticize QLD instead of NSW after losing 6 series in a row. Should you not be scrutinizing your selecters? Or your best players? Or your Coach? Why is it QLD’s problem?
January 11th 2012 @ 9:19pm
bjt said | January 11th 2012 @ 9:19pm | Report comment
Arrogant? When we start throwing “grenades” after scoring a try we’re arrogant. Ignorant? When our captain starts blaming the ref for a loss we’re ignorant.
January 12th 2012 @ 2:52am
mfree said | January 12th 2012 @ 2:52am | Report comment
im a nsw die hard, but i think passion and hatred can only take you so far and in some cases hinder your performance and clarity of mind which im speaking as a amatuer boxer, but in the end of the day its talent and composure and this is where qld have the upper hand, atm they are going through a golden era as someone already said and nsw had there golden times also but didnt last as long as the current qld squad. when i saw the selection sheet for 2011 immediately i saw the locky and thurston vs pierce and soward comparison and also i thought they should read the expire date on minichello, i actually thought we had a pretty good forward pack apart from tim manner, cause you cant blame ricky stuart for trying something different after 5years in a row which obviously indicates its a hard task to play them at there own game, and game two showed its benefit especially when the ref wanted a faster paced game which fell perfectly into nsw mobillity game plan by running the qld forwards down, but mal was a genious in game three who cancelled out the mobillity by starving pocession and forcing repeated line drop outs which in turns forces repeated defence which obviously drained the mobillity and stamina out of the nsw forwards and when you have a bunch of tired forwards which dont have as much size and power as the more fresh opposite forwards what do you have? when your forwards are tired and not making metres you need your halves to make up for the lack of metres with a good kicking game which pierce couldnt deliver, you see it with qld, when the forwards need a breather you see smith,locky,thurston making good metres with there kicking game. If we cant beat qld back line we need to focus on beating there forwards which i think was ricky stuarts angle that nearly worked. in the end of the qld are a better team and to refute it is just stupidity.
January 12th 2012 @ 5:17am
BennO said | January 12th 2012 @ 5:17am | Report comment
Sure maybe some of you have a bit of feeling for SOO, I can understand that. It sucks to lose, especially when your state has the most players, the most resources, the most teams to choose from etc. That would hurt.
But I’m sorry mate, there is a difference between the people south of the tweed and us redneck nutbags up here, and it’s not just the talent of the team, Fatties boys in 95 showed that pretty clearly and so did the heroes of 2001. Whether you want to call it “passion” or something else, it’s summed up by a comment I read on the Roar last year: the difference between NSW and QLD is that the players from NSW want to get selected so they get to play State of Origin, but the players from north of the tweed want to get selected so they get to represent Queensland.
January 15th 2012 @ 1:05pm
Charles said | January 15th 2012 @ 1:05pm | Report comment
NSW has a problem in that they cannot find a team that matches QLD brilliance and for quite a number of years.
This is despite the fact NSW has so many players to choose from that could give QLD a shake for their money with two or three teams.
This indicates we have huge problem in the selection process and to my mind the coaches we have had since Phil Gould
How can one have passion when we keep chopping and changing the teams not only in each year but in each game.
What NSW needs to do is select players that are of Origin calibre and make a team out of them
Jarrod Hayne should have been the first player picked last year with others like Kurt Giddley, Anthony Watmough, Luke Lewis, Paul Gallen and the likes that can give 80 minutes of football. These players can play in any position. We keep trying new and up comming potential players when you got the likes of Luke Bailey and Brett Kite that will go all day doing their job. This is of course if they are in form and not carrying injuries. Certainly our 1/2, 5/8 and hooker combination is a problem for NSW.
Anyone seen the amount of players in Ricky Stuart has in camp for NSW 2012
He must be joking if he is thinking that half of these players are up to Origin and demonstrates why he should not be the coach or at least not involved in the selction process. QLD on the other hand have it down pact, we have a lot to learn.