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When I look for meaning in the City-Country concept, it doesn’t take me long to find it.
Plenty of people would like to see the game canned, but it still has a lot of relevance in my view.
Granted, it wasn’t a good look when there were so many withdrawals from the City team after it was named, but injuries can happen. I’m going to accept that they were legitimate.
If there was a wave of players who genuinely didn’t want to play in the game, then why is the Country team intact? There have been no withdrawals from their squad.
I’ve gone through the two teams and found plenty of meaning for a lot of players in the game at Coffs Harbour on Sunday.
People like Michael Gordon at fullback for Country. What if Brett Stewart isn’t fit for NSW, which is always a chance because of his regular injury battles? There aren’t a lot of other options.
And Akuila Uate, the Country winger. Dumped from the NSW team after State of Origin II last year, and no longer in the Australian team either. Do you reckon he’s not looking to shine?
Jamal Idris, the Country centre, desperate to add to his one appearance for the Blues, in 2010.
Second-rowers Boyd Cordner and Josh Jackson. NSW coach Laurie Daley pushed hard for that pair to be in the Country starting side. He is a big fan of them as potential Origin players.
Michael Ennis, the Country hooker. What would happen if incumbent NSW hooker Robbie Farah got hurt? Ennis would like to think he’d be considered for a recall.
Newcastle forward Alex McKinnon, on the bench for Country. He only recently turned 21. As if he’s not excited about the opportunity to make his senior representative debut.
In the City side, how pumped would James Tedesco have been to get his chance at fullback, after Jarryd Hayne was ruled out? No doubt it was a red-letter day in his young career.
Nathan Merritt, the City winger, who is still chasing that elusive NSW jumper at the age of 29.
City centre Michael Jennings, a likely NSW selection, but I wouldn’t say over the line yet. City five-eighth Curtis Sironen – ditto what I said about Tedesco, after Josh Reynolds withdrew.
City halfback Adam Reynolds. We all want to get a look at him in a representative jumper, don’t we? City Prop Tim Grant, a NSW player last year but a slow starter this season.
He would know he needs to lift, and this game would be a good way for him to start.
Tony Williams, in the City second-row. I’m sure I don’t need to explain. Andrew Fifita and Tom Symonds, on the City bench. They would be busting to get out there.
And Ryan Hoffman. I was at the City training session and kids’ coaching clinic at Castle Hill on Wednesday to interview a couple of players for other media outlets, and I bumped into the City second-rower.
Even if you’ve had nothing to do with Hoffman, you would know from having seen him interviewed that he is a very personable bloke.
He is in the City team at a time when he is in great form for Melbourne and his last representative match was for Australia, at the end of last season.
We had a chat, during which I suggested to him that he should have been playing in Canberra tonight, as opposed to Coffs Harbour on Sunday.
Hoffman, typically, had already copped it sweet that he wasn’t in the Australian team, and had moved on to trying to make the NSW team, which he hasn’t played for since 2008.
The Storm star has a great attitude. I’m tipping he will be one of the stars of Sunday’s game, and will make the Blues side.
But the player who perhaps stands to gain the most out of Sunday’s game is Country five-eighth James Maloney. If it is not a genuine Origin trial for him, then there is no such thing.
The NSW number six jumper is there for the taking, and Maloney is preparing for his audition. Try telling him that City-Country doesn’t mean anything.
Right now, it would mean everything to him.
This is all apart from the fact the City-Country game is an important focus for country football.
It serves as an encouragement to children in the country to pick up a football, and, economically, it helps the centre in which the game is played. This is a good thing.
Plus, the game is now on a stand-alone weekend, so we no longer have the ridiculous situation in which players have to back up from it to play for their NRL clubs 24 or 48 hours later.
And the players enjoy playing in it. Ask them, they will tell you.
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