Eight Origin debutants will be charged with guiding a revamped NSW side to their first series victory against Queensland since 2005. It was the only way to go.
The NSW selectors have finally come to terms with the current crisis the Blues find themselves in, and have selected a team, that at last, should wake NSW up from its three year slumber.
The blooding of inform players such as James McManus, Michael Jennings, Ben Creagh, Michael Weyman, Justin Poore, Terry Campese, Robbie Farah and Glenn Stewart should provide NSW with the attacking spark necessary to really trouble the Maroons this series.
The entire Blues line-up provides a unique blend of toughness and flare that has not been apparent in the past three seasons.
Fullback and captain Kurt Gidley is as tough as they come, while Knights team-mate McManus is also a courageous customer that plays much in the same vein as Storm winger Anthony Quinn when in form.
The centre pairing of Jamie Lyon and Michael Jennings is easily NSW’s most potent partnership in years, considering both possess the capabilities to change the course of a game with a brilliant offload or raw speed.
Terry Campese and Peter Wallace provide the Blues with a halves combination that will ensure quality ball movement, and a flawless kicking game, that on form, is currently more precise than that of Maroon halves Darren Lockyer and Johnathon Thurston.
Campese and Wallace will have the necessary time and space to imply their respective games, courtesy of a very talented, and mobile NSW forward pack.
The inclusion of Dragons second rower Ben Creagh has been long overdue by the selectors, but it is one that should no doubt reap dividends based on his present form.
And despite plying his trade in a struggling Cronulla Sharks side, Paul Gallen has shown enough individually this season to see him retain his spot in the Blues second row.
Cowboys forward Luke O’Donnell also makes a return to the representative arena, thanks mainly to his great form over the past three weeks that has seen his club register three wins on the trot leading into their bye.
Arguably the most contested position in the NSW line-up was at hooker, where Michael Ennis, Issac De Gois and Robbie Farah were all in the running for selection.
In the end, the selectors opted for Farah in a decision that was, ultimately, the correct one, given the attacking prowess the Tigers captain has shown, not just this season, but throughout his career.
The interchange bench for NSW is also very impressive.
Craig Wing was at his dynamic best when he played for City earlier this season, while he has also displayed consistent form for the Rabbitohs.
Dragons duo Justin Poore and Michael Weyman are arguably the top two props in the NRL at the moment, and one feels these two could provide NSW with that extra bit of muscle that could just help wrestle Origin supremacy away from QLD.
DannoW
Guest
Why is Campese in the team? I have yet to see him threaten the line in attack. He is a passer and kicker, who offers nothing else in attack..a dud selection for sure. Should have had Mullen or Gidley there instead.
westy
Guest
I look forward to watching the games. Just like the tri nations I thoroughly enjoy rugby league's state of origin . I do hope NSW can win a little sick of the QLD dominance. However that QLD backline has real class about it.
Alan Nicolea
Guest
Greg I think McManus will be marking him judging by the team sheet, but i would not be surprised if Hayne gets the job. Its a difficult assignment either way. Guys such as Kite and Bailey really have to pressure the kicking games of Thurston and Lockyer, in order for Folau's presence to be a limited one in the game.
Greg Russell
Roar Guru
Fred, don't understand your comment, we obviously have trouble understanding each other (see elsewhere). Keep it polite, mate. Looking forward to seeing that photo of you. Alan, thanks. I wasn't actually complaining about the selection of McManus, I was just asking if you - as one who has seen a lot more of him - could enlighten me. You've done that. Seems almost de rigueur at this website that if one asks a genuine question, it gets interpreted as an opinion (that's the problem I've been having elsewhere today with the good Fred). One place where I admit my prose could have been tighter: I didn't mean to imply that McManus is no better than Steve Turner (quite obviously he is). Rather, I was just wondering if, like Quinn also, McManus was a winger chosen at the behest of Bellamy at the expense of a more fancied option. A question you didn't answer: any idea which man will be marking Folau?
Alan Nicolea
Guest
Greg McManus is definitely not a Steve Turner in the way you presume. In terms of playing ability, McManus is much like Quinn due to the fact that when both are on form, they can score tries on the wing despite the numerous and often painful presence of opposition defenders on a regular basis. They are also very good dummy half runners, and that is a must in Origin football. The passing games of Campese and Wallace will only strengthen McManus' form on the wing. Yes, Joel Monaghan was a controversial omittee from the NSW squad and he would no doubt have been able to handle the constant aerial assaults from the likes of Lockyer and co. McManus however has also displayed a very safe ability under the high ball this season, bar his performance on Monday night against the Cowboys. Although i do not think McManus has the X factor (I never said he did in the first place), i feel his overall playing style suits Origin football and deserves to be given the chance. But we are all entitled to our opinion and your views are certaintly not wrong. An opinion is never wrong as long as its justified buddy. Indeed i would not have complained if Monaghan found himself in the side.
fred
Guest
GREG,what chanel/station do you tune into most of the time or do you just rove like the ADD. bewell
Greg Russell
Roar Guru
Alan, I can understand and support 16 of the 17 NSW selections. The only one I am in the dark about is James McManus. Can you shed any light on this? Newcastle is not one of the teams I tune into all that often, but I have seen (TV) and heard (ABC radio) just enough to know that the form of McManus is certainly strong. However I am not aware of any sense in which he has an X-factor, as can be used to justify the selections of Jennings and Campese. So I'm wondering how McManus got the nod ahead of Joel Monaghan. I'm not sure who will go up against Folau on that side of the field (Qld's right), as I have mental images of both Hayne and McManus being left-sided wingers. Regardless, it seems to me that neither has the tools to cope with Big Izzy in the air, and that Monaghan would have been NSW's best bet in that regard. I am also wondering whether McManus is the Anthony Quinn/Steve Turner of this series, i.e., the NSW winger chosen at Bellamy's special request. Anyway, I may have this all wrong ... I'll await your enlightenment!