Yes, it’s a better Queensland team than the one they fielded in State of Origin 1. No, it’s still not good enough to beat NSW in Game 2.
Not if everyone involved in the game at ANZ Stadium next Wednesday plays at or near their potential.
The only way the result from Game 1, which NSW won 28-4, could be turned around is if the Maroons improve considerably and the Blues drop a couple of notches.
I don’t see that happening.
The return of Johnathan Thurston alone would have made Queensland better, even if they had declined to make any other changes. But they cut a swathe through the team, so let’s look at who came in and who went out.
Forwards Nate Myles, Sam Thaiday, Aiden Guerra and Jacob Lillyman, and centre Justin O’Neill, were all dropped and you can’t argue with any of those decisions.
Five-eighth Anthony Milford ended up being unavailable because of injury, but he was always going to make way for Thurston if the latter was fit again and there was no way he would have survived on the bench, with Michael Morgan already there.
(AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
Winger Corey Oates could be considered the unlucky one, when you look at it purely from the perspective of his form in Game 1 of the series, but Queensland are still better off with Valentine Holmes coming in for him.
Holmes simply has more to offer than Oates.
A lot of people think Billy Slater, having been recalled at fullback with Darius Boyd moving to left centre, is automatically going to carve it up, but it’s not as simple as that.
More than anything, Boyd found it difficult to make an impact in Game 1 because the Maroons were so badly beaten in the forwards.
Queensland had to make changes up front, because if they had picked the same players they would have been asking for the same result.
But can the players who have come in change the outcome? It’s unlikely.
Josh Papalii has been pushed up from second-row to prop. With Game 1 prop Myles and all three bench forwards from that match gone, there is no-one else.
Tim Glasby and Jarrod Wallace come into the squad, but they are both making their Origin debuts and were never going to start up front.
Papalii is as tough as they come and will handle that aspect of it, but this role is likely to restrict the attacking elements of his game during the period, or periods, in which he is firmly based in the middle of the field.
Second-rower Gavin Cooper made his Origin debut in Game 3 of last year’s series, but he was the only available player from that 18-14 loss who was left out of the Queensland team for the first match of the current series.
Now they have gone back to the 31-year-old. If he is good enough now, why wasn’t he good enough for Game 1?
Second-rower Coen Hess looks like a star in the making and he deserves his spot on the bench. He might dominate, but it’s more likely he’ll face a bit of a battle to find his way and get only 20-to-30 minutes of playing time.
There are only six games of Origin experience on the bench and they all belong to utility back Morgan.
There are only 13 games of Origin experience on the NSW bench, but still that looks clearly superior to the Queensland quartet.
(AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)
There is a fabulous mixture of size, power, skill and game-breaking ability among David Klemmer, Wade Graham, Jake Trbojevic and Jack Bird. Trbojevic and Klemmer have both played for Australia.
Starting props Andrew Fifita and Aaron Woods were tremendous early for the Blues in Origin 1, which Fifita turned into a man of the match performance. It’s going to be terribly hard again for Queensland to stop that pair from giving the home side a strong start.
NSW beat Queensland in the forwards in the first game and while the Maroons have tried to find an antidote for Game 2, it really wasn’t there among the players they could pick from up front.
Adam
Guest
Man I love reading this dribble after dominating another series feels soon gooooooooooooddddd!!!!
Naitch
Guest
Throw this in the garbage with that article Gould wrote yesterday. Mental fragility again the telling factor....Pearce went missing at 16-12 and the rumour is they still haven't found him.
Fordo
Guest
This makes for hilarious reading the day after the game. Most of the points made are reasonable and agreeable but we're talking about Queensland here, you might not believe in the magic of the maroons but it doesn't mean we won't keep rubbing it in NSW's face.
Griffo 09
Roar Rookie
I think New South Wales' biggest defensive vulnerabilities are in their centres and I think Johnathan Thurston is sort of player who can exploit that.
Chook
Guest
I have watched the replay of game 1 about 10 times. For mine it was the pace of the game that beat those old Queenslanders. They could keep pace in the first half. Come the 2nd, they were buggered.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Definitely agree with this. Despite the gulf between the teams selected in Game 1 and the forward dominance and the big score line, Queensland still created six clear cut scoring opportunities. Boyd's kick to Oates, Gagai getting within a metre after Smith ran it on the 5th and O'Neill grubbering after the line break, Guerra getting over, Gillett stopped just short, Boyd being held up and Gagai bundled into touch within a metre. They get a bit lucky with a couple of those and it's game on despite NSW dominance. I've watched the game a few times now and I don't think NSW's performance was as comprehensive as it's being made out despite the score line. I think there's a few things defensively that Queensland will have noted. And like others have said, there's no way the game will be played at the same break neck speed.
The Barry
Roar Guru
If there was one thing dad loved more than the serenity it was a two stroke engine at full throttle...
Nat
Roar Guru
There is so much wrong with that statement it's hard to know which way to pull it apart. Who in Qld has said "NSW are just lucky they had Buderus, Johns, Fittler and Mini? Along side Hindmarsh, Fitzy, Kennedy, Cooper, Gasnier, Matt King. No Origin players are there by luck. They are the hardest working team players in their respective positions available at the time. TEAM, not individuals, a concept NSW cannot fathom. NSW would want to win G2 otherwise you need to come to terms with the fact tat 13 nobodies just pumped your team again.
jacksyd
Guest
The QLD'ers realised after game 1 they want Mitchell Pearce on the field, not off.
JOHNY BULLDOG
Roar Rookie
Ha ha,true OB!
Agent11
Guest
that comment still stands, QLD are lucky they got some of the greatest spine players to ever play the game to make other players look good
Oingo Boingo
Guest
Your all donators to the tab JB ,only the days change.
Oingo Boingo
Guest
Perfect Storm ? The opposite could be said . Qld picks n sticks at the cauldron, NSW has a rookie at 9 and what many see as NSW worst half in history. They just stuck it up em and won , it's as simple as that .
Swannies
Guest
Blues are simply too good this year...game over for Qld. Congrats to Laurie!
Nat
Roar Guru
Agreed. Graham struggles to make a bench spot in NSW. Gillett been an Aust and Qld backrower for years.
Worlds Biggest
Guest
When the teams were picked for Game 1, I was quietly confident of a Blues win. After the Game 2 teams were picked I'm not so confident. Qld are a much stronger team now and it's a must win game.
R N
Roar Rookie
Can somebody hit somebody already! Next year ... teams picked on Monday, kick off on that Wednesday.. (without a Gus Gould monologue) the build up is killing me!
Raugeee
Guest
:)
Bee bee
Guest
So Smith is the coach/captain/selector/referee and apparently the greatest wrestler since Hulk Hogan quit to pursue his personal home movie career. No wonder he wants A pay rise. ?
matth
Guest
What I love about this game is that it could turn out any number of ways. QLD's pack is a complete unknown in this environment. They don't have the class of the NSW pack for sure, but there are simply no other players out there that you would say would definitely improve that pack. So for better or worse this is it for the Maroons. If the QLD pack somehow holds its own or even gets close to parity, then the quality of JT, Cronk, Slater and Boyd (despite his poor Game 1) come into it and this game could get very close indeed. QLD's biggest problem in Game 1 was simply fatigue. Too many old legs trying to carry the team for one game too many. By removing Myles, Lillyman and Thaiday the average minutes played by this pack in the NRL is now on a par with NSW. I think NSW might fall over the line, but it's certainly not a foregone conclusion. But equally the inexperienced QLD pack and especially the bench could just get overawed. If NSW get on a roll it could be carnage for the second game in a row. I believe there has been too much made of any decline in the QLD side. I think it has more been the rise of the NSW team. One thing's for sure, it has made this series one of the most interesting in years.