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Much has been written about Mitchell Pearce’s Origin career: the impotence, the stats, the failures. No Origin player has ever been given more flack.
And no one has ever been handed so many opportunities.
Yet, after numerous failures on the field and an indiscretion register which reads higher than his Origin try assists, it baffles that Pearce is still in line – let alone at the front of it – to once again command the HMAS Titanic NSW.
Yes, there are the arguments which bleat about NSW’s halves’ depth being poor, but that depth has hardly been explored either! A game here, a game there for other options, based on a rotation policy around Pearce.
Laurie Daley and previous selection panels have dropped the ball on many occasions, picking people on either reputation, favouritism or incumbency.
Whatever happened to form?
They missed the boat on Blake Austin, and that’s not putting the line through him at the moment either, but let’s not forget a few seasons back he was nearly scoring at will for the Raiders.
Heard of striking while the iron is hot, Laurie?
Remember Tariq Sims? Touted as the next Origin enforcer, once again, the selectors shouldered arms and missed a straight one. Tariq wasn’t picked, and he broke his leg in a club game instead of being on camp. The window of opportunity was missed.
What about when Jamie Soward and Peter Wallace were firing for Penrith?
Nope, let that one go too, boys? Wait another season or two? Wait until fans’ screams for sanity morph into selection pressure before you pick ’em? NSW have only been bombing Steedens down Billy Slater’s throat for ten years! Two noted kickers on the paddock at the same time surely could’ve helped the Blues’ cause.
Time and Time again in attack, NSW have been exposed as one-dimensional, clueless and void of leadership. Who could ever forget seeing a makeshift Queensland winger in Chris McQueen get a free pass, as he was not put under one scrap of pressure against the game’s best leaper, in Daniel Tupou. Embarrassing.
Where are the blokes being selected who have points, are game breakers, ooze form and possess x-factor?
It’s time to shelve the old criteria, along with any of the old guard, of which Pearce is definitely a part, and put a red marker around form and point-scoring capabilities.
Perhaps it’s even time to shoehorn Laurie Daley and any of the selection panel out, too.
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