Original sin: Kevin Walters is silly for not picking Billy

Queensland blew it. The omission of Billy Slater was a massive mistake, and the Maroons will pay the price on Wednesday evening.

They simply got too clever for their own good. They overthought things. Kevin Walters and his merry men made this decision based on statistics and analysis, rather than just asking Billy if he was right to play. In previous years, that would have been enough.

For what’s felt like generations, banana benders from Coolangatta to Cooktown have watched on with smug satisfaction as the NSW selectors chopped and changed more often than Blake Austin’s barber.

While the Blues kept searching for the winning formula, the Maroons stuck solid. They showed faith in those who had been there and done it before. Selection was based on incumbency, not form. Pick and stick. Pride. Passion. Mateship. Queenslander!

So when it came to the selection of Billy Slater, the decision looked pretty straightforward. A future Immortal becomes available for selection, you pick him. A man with 27 Origin caps puts his hand up, you pick him. A Queensland Origin legend is willing and able, you pick him.

To say that NSW was shocked by the non-selection of Slater would be an understatement. The decision felt so misguided, so illogical, so very NSW. It was as though the vanquished spirit of Bob Fulton had returned for one last Origin hurrah.

(AAP Image/Dan Peled)

What Queenslanders may not fully understand is that, despite their squad being littered with more Immortals than downtown Sparta, Billy Slater was the poster boy for our decade of darkness. He was public enemy number one. The single player we hated more than any other. And it was because of the impact he had on each and every Origin game he played in.

It’s no secret that the Blues have had massive problems at the halfback position since Andrew Johns retired. However, what’s not widely discussed is the role that Billy Slater played in our inability to develop an Origin calibre number 7.

Jamie Soward, Peter Wallace, Todd Carney, Terry Campese, James Maloney, Mitchell Pearce. These were all quality footballers who had earned the right to represent their state. They’d won grand finals, captained their clubs, and been awarded Dally M medals, but Slater made them look like the 2015 edition of Chris Sandow.

Billy’s outstanding positional play and field vision went up a notch during Origin. He was in our heads all night. When a grubber was poked into the in-goal, Slater was there. When an expansive backline movement was executed to perfection, Slater would still shut it down. When a towering bomb was launched into the corner, Slater barely broke a sweat in defusing it.

Pearce in particular has seen his State of Origin career pushed to the brink of extinction by the manner in which Slater completely neutralised his kicking game. It was truly painful to watch. It didn’t seem to matter where Mitch placed his clearing kicks, Billy would take the ball in stride and surge up the field.

It wouldn’t have surprised me if Pearce kicked for touch off the back of a penalty, only to see Billy pouch it in row ten of the stands.

I understand that Slater has been largely absent from the Queensland side for the better part of the last two series (both Queensland victories), but this isn’t the same Queensland side.

Since Slater last featured in an interstate contest, the Maroons have lost 131 games of Origin experience. It’s hard to believe Queensland would not have benefitted from Billy’s poise, professionalism and experience for Game 1, and they got it wrong by leaving him out of the side.

But I’m sure glad that they did. The omission of Billy Slater will serve as a massive mental boost for New South Wales, and no one will feel it more than Mitchell Pearce. Come Wednesday night, I have a word of advice for all you Queenslanders out there: bring a fork. Old Mitch is about to serve you up a juicy slice of humble pie.

Mitchell Pearce celebrates for the Roosters. (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Grant Trouville)

What happened to unpredictability?
I hate these bye rounds. With no Thursday Night Football, I found myself at a loose end. Without the lure of live sport, I was faced with a grim list of evening options – read a book, catch up on work, spend time with friends and family, or roll the dice on whatever filler Fox League had served up.

I chose to roll the dice and was richly rewarded with a replay of Game 1 of the 1998 State of Origin series. Those were special times to be a NSW supporter. We had world class halves growing on trees.

For that encounter, the Blues had Andrew Johns at halfback, Laurie Daley at five-eighth, Tooves at hooker, Freddy packing in at lock, and even Matty Johns making up the numbers on the bench.

But despite a wealth of Blue talent on display, it was a Queenslander that caught my eye. The performance of Allan Langer in that game was nothing short of phenomenal. Playing opposite a prototypical halfback in Johns, it was Alfie’s unorthodox style of play that stood out the most.

From his judo tackling tactics to his swerving running style and diminutive stature, Langer was a unique proposition for the defence. Equally likely to chip and chase, take on the line or send the ball spiralling towards his outside backs, the NSW defenders stood off Alfie all night and the nuggetty Maroon made them pay.

It was his short kicking game that did the most damage. They were ugly ducklings off the boot, awkward and ungainly. But the further they travelled, the more beautiful they became, bouncing with the unpredictability of Donald Trump’s Twitter account. And when the ball had finally pinballed its way into the in-goal area, those ugly ducklings had blossomed into full-blown swans. Nasty little things they were, near impossible to gather up cleanly.

You don’t see kicks like that in the modern game. I can’t even remember the last time I saw a player attempt a chip and chase. With the march towards structured game plans, high-percentage plays and rigid attacking philosophies, rugby league has stamped out players like Allan Langer.

But if Game 1 of that 1998 Origin series taught me anything, besides making sure I switch off my TV with two minutes to go, it’s how effective unpredictability can be in the game of rugby league. Coaches are doing their teams a disservice by relying too heavily on structure.

At some point, you just have to let these guys go out there and play footy. It worked for Alfie.

5th Tackle Option
Here are five quick thoughts on the action from Round 12:

1. And so it begins. After being touted as pre-season favourites, the Warriors went missing for the first three months of the season, only to resurface just in time for Origin. New Zealand will now embark upon a fairytale run over the next few months, winning more games than they lose, and giving fans hope that the finals may still be in reach. They will fall agonisingly short, but their strong performances over the second half of the season will generate great expectations for 2018. And so it goes.

2. I’m sorry, but four games of footy just isn’t enough. Particularly when one of those games features a pair of out of form and injury-riddled sides throwing weary haymakers at one another, as was the case on Friday night.

If neutral Sydney sports fans needed any reason to go and watch the Swans instead of switching on the rugby league, South Sydney and Parramatta obliged. And while I know there isn’t a better solution on the table, the current scheduling around the Origin period is highly detrimental to the overall product being shown on a weekly basis. Any ideas Todd?

3. Paul Gallen is in danger of becoming the next Anthony Mundine. The former NSW skipper turned rent-a-quote can’t seem to stay out of the media, although he isn’t trying too hard. Whether it’s talking up his own form, refusing to rule out an Origin comeback, or speculating that he may play on well into his 50s, Gallen’s comments smack of an ageing player desperate to remain relevant.

(AAP Image/Craig Golding)

Gal has carved out a nice little rugby league legacy. He captained both NSW and Cronulla to historic, drought-breaking victories, and his place in the game is in no danger of being forgotten. But if Gallen keeps up his back page theatrics, he’ll be remembered for all the wrong reasons.

4. Although Brisbane lost the game, it was good to see Ben Hunt get back on the paddock and even better to see Benji Marshall get a run. But was Marshall a better option that Kodi Nikorima? Not in my opinion. Wayne Bennett brought Benji to the club for precisely this sort of situation, so perhaps he felt obliged to give him a game. Still, at this stage in his career, Kodi Nikorima gives the Broncos a better chance to win games than Benji Marshall.

5. Bring on Wednesday night!