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NSW superstar Jarryd Hayne was named on the wing for the Blues on Sunday night. Yet by Monday afternoon, he was ruled out with injury, after failing to overcome his torn hamstring.
The decision to put a line through Hayne’s name and call-up James McManus has cast a dark shadow over the Blues preparations for the deciding match in 2013 State of Origin series.
McManus is no slouch, and his try-scoring feats this year bear testament to his form, but not even his biggest fan would put him in Hayne’s class, particularly at Origin level.
Make no mistake about it, Hayne is one of the few Blues players that strikes fear into Queenslanders, as he is capable of winning a match all by himself.
Hayne’s absence from the NSW team ensures that the Blues will be outsiders to win the game, which would end seven years of pain for the team and their supporters.
Though, in State of Origin football, a team entering the game as underdogs has traditionally meant next to nothing. Despite Queensland’s recent dominance, very little actually separates the two sides, and a little bit of luck may decide the outcome of the game next Wednesday.
To that point, I’m a big believer in the saying “luck is where preparation and opportunity meet”, and NSW will certainly be hoping they’re lucky in Sydney next week.
The issue for NSW is that Hayne is a player with a propensity to be lucky. He has a habit of being in the right place at the right time, which is actually skill in itself.
He is also capable of doing freakish things on the football field, as he possesses a rare combination of skill, size, speed and x-factor.
In a nutshell, he’s a great player, and has been one of NSW’s best over the course of his Origin career. Which begs the obvious question: can the Blues win without him?
Queensland fans will rightly point out that the Blues haven’t been able to win with him, and it’s a more than fair argument.
In any case, to pose such a question is a touch mischievous, because the definitive answer won’t come until next Wednesday, and it is mere speculation and guesswork to attempt to answer it beforehand.
What can’t be disputed is that the Blues mission to end their seven-year drought just got immeasurably harder.
Hayne brings so much to the table, that he is literally impossible to replace. So perhaps a more astute question would be: what will the Blues miss in Hayne’s absence, apart from the aforementioned x-factor?
For starters, Hayne has a super boot, and one that has been utilised in general play by the Blues, due to both the distance he can attain, and because NSW’s halves have sometimes struggled in this facet of play.
Though he can be found out of position occasionally in defence when playing fullback, his instincts also see him cover ground and counter-attack like few other players in the game.
He’s experienced at this level of football, and with the intense pressure that comes with a deciding match in an Origin series, it’s beneficial to have players that will rise to the occasion, as Hayne has done numerous times.
His size, strength and speed are obviously useful weapons in attack, but are also valuable attributes when a certain player named Greg Inglis is unleashed down the Maroons left hand side.
Lastly, as mentioned previously, Hayne is a player that Queensland both respect and fear.
I have no doubt that Mal Meninga and his players will be pleased that Hayne has been ruled out – not because they wish an injury upon him, but because they know what Hayne is capable of – and the Maroons camp will be buoyed by the news the Blues winger won’t be lining up against them.
To be fair, on that last point, the Queensland Maroons are a great rugby league side, and they would have been extremely confident of a wrapping up a series win even if Jarryd Hayne was playing next week.
In fact, such is their pride, they probably would have even preferred Hayne was playing.
Yet there can be no denying that, just as NSW’s mission just got a little bit harder, Queensland’s just got a littler easier.
Both NSW and Queensland will be aware of that fact, which can only affect the morale in both camps, in opposing ways.
And that’s before we even contemplate the impact if both Greg Bird and Paul Gallen are also ruled out.
It’s not quite “Mission Impossible” for NSW, but Blues fans could be forgiven for thinking that it’s starting to feel that way.