Queensland Maroons team for 2014 State of Origin Game 2: Expert reaction

Game 2 of State of Origin 2014 is the biggest Origin since the last one, and injuries have seen Queensland selectors forced to name a 22-man squad after the Maroons went down 12-8 in a Game 1 passport-shredder.

Not since Game 2 of the 1989 series has a Queensland side been so injury-ravaged. The Maroons still emerged victorious that night despite finishing the game with 12 men, thanks in part to a memorable 40-metre solo try from the King, Wally Lewis.

Here’s the side that will be greeted by thunderous boos when they run onto ANZ Stadium on Wednesday June 18. Whether the 17 that takes the field bears any resemblance to this is best known to Messrs Slater, Inglis, Cherry-Evans and their respective physicians.

>> NSW BLUES SIDE FOR 2014 ORIGIN 2: EXPERT REACTION

>> Maroons injury updates here

Billy Slater
After suffering a shoulder injury in Game 1, Slater will be wearing so much strapping tape he’d never make weight required in his jockeying days.

Down a yard on pace, but Queensland’s best by a couple of lengths in Brisbane. In fact, the only better player on the park was his opposite number.

Darius Boyd
No one stands on the end of a backline and gets fed tries by Greg Inglis quite like Darius Boyd. His club form has picked up in recent weeks, and he could find himself in the coveted No. 1 jersey on game day, pending injury issues.

Greg Inglis
Inglis was well handled by Josh Morris and Beau Scott in Brisbane, so he’ll be happy to see the back of at least one of those pests in the return bout.

Still, after trudging out of Perth in a moon boot on Saturday night he might be seeing as much game time as Morris himself.

Justin Hodges
Although he looked like a man still on the comeback trail in Game 1, Hodges’ commitment couldn’t be faulted. Those trademark dummy-half dashes will need a little more zing if they’re to trouble the Blues this time round.

Brent Tate
If they played Origin football in Futurama, Brent Tate would be one of those disembodied heads in a jar, attached to a robot body so he could represent the Maroons forever. And he still wouldn’t be as tough as the genuine article.

Survived an unexpected audition for Cirque du Soleil at the hands of Josh Reynolds and Scott in Game 1, yet remained rock solid on the kick return. Expect the same in Sydney, minus the acrobatics.

Johnathan Thurston
The only thing more dangerous than Johnathan Thurston in a State of Origin game is Johnathan Thurston backing up after a quiet State of Origin game.

Be afraid, New South Wales. Be very afraid.

Daly Cherry-Evans
Was handed the keys to the Ferrari 10 minutes into Game 1, but clearly hadn’t done enough hours behind the wheel of Cooper Cronk’s pride and joy to pass the test. In fairness to Cherry-Evans, his forward runners were rarely where he expected them to be either.

An entire training camp at the controls of the Maroon machine will help his cause.

Matt Scott
Didn’t bring his resurgent club form into the Origin arena until his second stint in Game 1. Coach Mal Meninga will have the Cowboys front rower so fired up that his first hit-up could rupture the space-time continuum.

If he somehow hits 88 miles per hour, strap yourself in.

Cameron Smith
Not even an ankle injury could stop Cameron Smith plotting and scheming to the death in the first game, and he’s backed that up with stirring performances for a Storm team decimated by injury.

The key in this Maroons spine whether on two legs or one.

Nate Myles
The driving force behind Queensland’s stirring second-half comeback last time round. Needs to bring that sort of brutality onto the park from the first minute in Sydney, not the 51st.

Sam Thaiday
Thaiday might not get many minutes given his lack of match fitness, but will pose a constant danger if he and Slater can work up a right-side combination with Cherry-Evans.

Matt Gillett
Carried his career-best club form onto the Origin paddock in Brisbane, though if he had his time over he’d give it all up to take a superb early ball from Cronk on the chest and crash over near the sticks.

Will likely return to his favoured left side to accommodate Thaiday’s return.

Corey Parker – Parker has been ruled out with a facial fracture, and is replaced in the squad by Gold Coast forward David Taylor.
Usually works so hard that an entire team of statisticians have to track his progress, but was a little down on numbers in a torrid first game. A boost in the offloads column will be especially helpful to the Queensland cause.

Chris McQueen
Quiet in Game 1, but gave selectors a timely reminder of his versatility when filling in at centre for the Rabbitohs against the Warriors. It was as good as McQueen has looked in a year where he hasn’t kicked on as hoped.

Ben Te’o
It’s hard to decide which was Ben Te’o’s most damaging performance of 2014 – his rousing effort off the bench for Queensland in Brisbane, or his measured post-presser spray of Danny Weidler last week.

A repeat of the former will be vital to the Maroons’ hopes in Sydney.

Josh Papalii – Update: Papalii is out of Origin 2 with an ankle injury.
No one would be more grateful for the Maroons’ pick-and-stick philosophy than the Canberra Raiders giant. Another limp attacking display here and he could find himself hanging with Dave Taylor in Origin purgatory. [Update: Papalii is out of Origin 2 with an ankle injury.]

Aidan Guerra
An unexpected standout in his Origin debut, threatening to break through the Blues line on a number of occasions without ever quite cracking it. If he could shine in that classic encounter, he can shine again next Wednesday.

Will Chambers
Has worn the red of Queensland in Super Rugby but is still to taste Origin football. A big chance of a starting role, but the way Michael Jennings danced around him on Sunday wasn’t encouraging.

Jacob Lillyman
The Warriors prop had people crying foul after his omission in the first game. He is in the squad here, but whether his club form will push him into the 17 remains to be seen.

Ben Hunt
Has thrived as Brisbane’s full-time No. 7 this season, handling the bulk of the playmaking given Josh Hoffman is a five-eighth in name only. Could be a season too soon for Origin, but Broncos combinations may be vital.

Anthony Milford
The fleet-footed Raider has done enough for Mal to draft him into the squad here. Is this just for the Origin experience? Or will he be used in a Matt Bowen-esque bench role? Depending on Slater’s fitness, he also could be yet another candidate for the Maroons’ fullback spot.

Willie Tonga
Hasn’t played Origin football since courageously carrying a dislocated shoulder through Game 1, 2011. Parramatta’s strong 2014 form sees him recalled from the rep football wilderness, and he’ll be a natural fit in the left centre position should Inglis vacate it.

David Taylor
A late call-up to the squad following the withdrawal of Josh Papalii and Corey Parker, big Dave will want to make an impact if he gets onto the Origin arena for the first time since 2012. A true rocks or diamonds prospect, it’s anyone’s guess what he will produce if selected.

Note: Queensland have not named numbers for their side, and we have ordered it in what is a likely run-on team for the Maroons, discounting injury.