State of Origin is hurting club football
Roar Pro By NF, 15 May 2012 NF is a Roar Pro
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State of Origin is right around the corner. While Origin fever will hit Queensland very soon, I will not be one of those excited for it’s arrival.
As a North Queensland Cowboys supporter, it’s the one period of the year that we dread. I’m sure there fans who feel the same when they see their teams lose key players on representative duty for a large part of the middle of the season.
Mid-season is a important part of the year for any code, as it slowly sorts out the wheat from the chaff and provides a good indication who will be the top teams come finals time.
Around Origin time, both the quality of the games and the competitiveness of some teams are compromised. The representative period jeopardises many teams chances of making the top eight. Aside from losing players to Origin duty, players who play Origin also face a considerable injury risk.
A prime example is Johnathan Thurston’s injury in game three of Origin last year. As a result of the injury, the Cowboys lost some of their games at the tail end of the season and finished in seventh place.
Aside from the effect on club football, I must admit my interest in Origin is waning now that Queensland win so often. It’s still fiercely competitive, but interest is always higher when wins are traded back and forth.
With the first match less than two weeks away, I have realised that I just don’t care about it as much any more. I would prefer to see the Cowboys win a premiership than another Queensland Origin win.
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May 15th 2012 @ 7:09am
Andy said | May 15th 2012 @ 7:09am | Report comment
I do not mind State of Origin as it serves as a bit of a shake up for the competition, giving opportunities for lesser teams to climb the ladder.
May 15th 2012 @ 7:11am
oikee said | May 15th 2012 @ 7:11am | Report comment
Your starting to sound like a Victorian. Just get used to the fact it is part of the game, has been for 30 years.
I think origin adds to a long season. Week-in week-out grind can get boring. Origin is spice, spice to life, embrace it.
Lockyer played for how many years? did you ever hear me whinge he might get hurt. ?
May 15th 2012 @ 8:06am
The Cattery said | May 15th 2012 @ 8:06am | Report comment
Careful Oikee – that Victorian disease can spread!!
May 15th 2012 @ 10:31am
oikee said | May 15th 2012 @ 10:31am | Report comment
As also the maroon crusade. Is why 1 origin game is vertually impossible to buy tickets. If your not a member you risk missing out.
The 4x maroons will be like the yankies one day, you will need to wait for a person to die to get a seat. Tickets will be passed to grandkids, even if the game is played in NZ, it will be the same, the Queensland maroon members will get first choice.
This is rugby league 50 year plan.
A 20 year plan is so yesterday Cattery.
Origin is a massive business these days, it has grown into such a huge marketing enterprise not only here, but also in world sport, a tool that can get huge sponsership, is why VB and Forex are hanging onto the sponsership for all its worth. It is bigger than most club rivalries, being it is a 3 game series. It is supported by sponserships and clubs, and still at growth mode.
Melbourne is a fantastic market for Origin, every body has heard of origin.
The next market would be NZ, then possibly Perth Adelaide before we attack overseas markets. like London ,America in 20 years time. Origin is beamed into these markets now.
Even as the sport grows, Origin will always be held up as our showpiece, and why not, we never gave up on the passion the series has for Queenslanders. This is the main driving force even when the NSW public were going cold, we keep our driving passion high. And now the rewards.
Queensland has no AFL final, no NRL final, no Melbourne cup or Australian open , we have not much to proclaim our own, but we own Origin, and this is what glues our state together, nothing will ever change that.
Yo, Origin rocks, and if one of our players gets injured, so be it, he did his part for us, for our state. He will be remembered with hero status with his name on the walk of fame outside the home of Origin, Suncorp.
May 15th 2012 @ 8:31am
jdubya said | May 15th 2012 @ 8:31am | Report comment
Origin is unique. No other sport in the world has anything like it. It is the pinnacle of rugby league and that is why we tolerate our teams running around without their stars for a few weeks.
May 15th 2012 @ 8:35am
Crosscoder said | May 15th 2012 @ 8:35am | Report comment
yeahI that Murray River virus is a doozie.Origin is just one of the prescribed remedies..
Get used to it.Many teams are affected for a short period ,so this tests the depth of each club,gives more players an opportunity
The great uncertainty of the game,shows with the many shock results that keep cropping up.And teams like the Eels with a .squad of talented players, is hardly setting the world on fire.
Any business that ignores or removes its most popular top of the range product,is asking for lower bottom line.
May 15th 2012 @ 8:42am
B.A Sports said | May 15th 2012 @ 8:42am | Report comment
I personally never care who wins Origin. I just want to see an exciting game, which isn’t always the case in Origin, but sometimes we get lucky..
I will say this though, when you look at the trouble the US sports have these days with their “all star” games in terms of them being the hieght of recognition for players, but the playrers don’t put in in the game, rugby league is lucky to have a game played with such passion by the best players.
May 15th 2012 @ 8:58am
Tom of Brisbane said | May 15th 2012 @ 8:58am | Report comment
I’m over this “they might get injured” thing. Why is getting injured in Origin any worse than getting injured in a premiership game? Michael De Vere did his knee at training, are clubs going to stop players training? There was a Manly player who did his knee tripping over a toddler at a family bbq, are the clubs going to ban bbqs?
May 15th 2012 @ 10:13am
oikee said | May 15th 2012 @ 10:13am | Report comment
Let me start by saying I’m a big fan of the opening game being played in Melbourne. This will be the seventh match played in Melbourne and I certainly believe we should continue to showcase the opening Origin game in Melbourne. The critics of relocating Origin games to Melbourne are failing to remember that Melbourne has produced many memorable “Origin moments”.
Melbourne hosted the first ever Origin match that was played outside of Sydney or Brisbane back in 1990. It was played in front of a sold out crowd at Olympic Park. NSW won that match and the series, and ended three years of Queensland dominance.
In 1994, Game Two was played at the MCG in front of 87,000 fans. At the time it was an Australian Rugby League record attendance.
The following year Origin football again returned to the MCG. Pre-match rumours of an all-in brawl were quickly realised when the now infamous ‘cattledog’ call was made by the Tom Raudonikis coached NSW side in the very first scrum.
And in 2006, at Etihad stadium, Darren Lockyer scored a try in the final minute of Game Three, to provide Queensland with their first series win since 2001 and the first of their record breaking six series victories.
Melbourne people today know a lot more about rugby league than they did in 1990. They are more aware of the players and the nuances of the game. It certainly makes for a great few days of rugby league in Melbourne, because a couple of days later you have the Storm v Broncos at AAMI Park. It is a great package.
Playing Origin footy was awesome, and the next best thing is being involved in a coaching capacity. Before I went to France to coach in 2009, I was a part of the Queensland camp and a part of the staff for the 2006, ’07 and ’08 series. Leaving that coaching position was one of the hardest decisions I have had to make, and I’d love to get the opportunity to get back involved in the Maroon camp.
This is the time you miss being a part of an Origin side. It is the most exciting time of the year outside of playing in a grand final.
You see the good players step-up at this time of year with Origin just around the corner.
Things can get a bit tired at club level, and the smell of Origin lifts everyone’s spirits. We saw it on Monday night with Greg Inglis’s performance, he was close to unstoppable and Todd Carney also had a massive game.
From a player’s point of view, the feeling of coming into camp is hard to explain. It has a distinctly different feel and different mentality from club footy. It is a really exciting time when you get into camp and get all your gear, everything is maroon. You are surrounded by the best players from different clubs and the entire Queensland coaching staff are all former Origin legends.
The State of Origin series is a very unique sporting rivalry. Arguably there is no other stand alone competition, anywhere else in the world that even comes close to the rivalry between the two states in rugby league.
As a Queensland kid, you dream of playing for the Maroons. You grow up with it bred into you. The success that Mal Meninga, his staff and the current Queensland team have enjoyed has ensured that the spirit and passion for Queensland lives on and the next generation of Queensland kids are dreaming of getting their opportunity to play for the Maroons. My advice to those kids – chase your dreams!
Written by Kevvie Walters.
Now i was critical of our marketing department, and maybe, just maybe i was wrong. If we all start to look at 50 years from now, and remember i preached, “every action has a reaction”, so 50 years from now, with the Broncos game next weekend after the origin game in Melbourne, which probably wont be in Melbourne in 50 years time, maybe the origin game is at Wembley, who knows, but the Broncos and Storm game will have a good crowd after this first Origin game because alot of Queenslanderzs will be stopping in Melbourne for this game, straight after origin 1.
The point being, the Broncos are a massive crowd puller, like Collingwood is to Melbourne, the Broncos are to Australia and NZ. The sellout crowd in NZ for the Bronx and warriors is a telling sign, along with our hugwe local derbies, our big double headers, the Broncos are a future force, and our sister club in London, the London Broncos will improve their position over the next 20 years.
Maybe this is the start of a 50 year outlook, we keep hearing about other codes and their 20 year visions, well league has got to have a 50 year vision. It is hard to see, i need a helping hand myself with some of my dinosaur comments, mind you, i can admit when i am wrong.
May 15th 2012 @ 11:05am
peeeko said | May 15th 2012 @ 11:05am | Report comment
I would have thought most kids grew up wanting to play for Australia not Qld?
May 15th 2012 @ 12:36pm
Tony Archers Maroon Underwear said | May 15th 2012 @ 12:36pm | Report comment
Dont forget the kids Oinkee with out origin they wouldn’t learn the critical lessons of honor and pride in your state from blokes like speedboat Inglis and VB Smith, or get to smear them selves in diahretic chicken poo color and cheer on Glen Munsie as he regails us all, with the odds for a News Ltd salary rorters victory.
However the real winners this year will be either Wheres Wally if he can make his way through the commentary with out stating the bleeding obvious. And the delightful little wine bars in the league heartland that is the Melbourne laneways (its about time rugby league put something back there)
May 15th 2012 @ 11:09am
peeeko said | May 15th 2012 @ 11:09am | Report comment
On a lighter note, origin is terrible for fantasy comps
May 15th 2012 @ 11:21am
Aceman said | May 15th 2012 @ 11:21am | Report comment
Hey Guys,
We are travelling down to Melbourne but dont have origin tix. Anyone know of anywhere in the city who are putting on an origin function that we can purchase 5 or 6 tix to?
May 15th 2012 @ 11:25am
oikee said | May 15th 2012 @ 11:25am | Report comment
Well there is a order, club, state, country. Makes sense if you follow league.