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Opinion
Queensland’s 34-10 loss to New South Wales in Game 2 was disappointing to say the least.
I will not even begin to speculate on what happened in the week after Game 1 that led to their dismal performance.
Wayne Bennett has a big job on his hands to get this side back in contention next Wednesday and there are several changes that need to be made. First let’s look at the Queensland side from Game 2.
1. Valentine Holmes (goal kicker)
2. Xavier Coates
3. Kurt Capewell
4. Dane Gagai
5. Phillip Sami
6. Cameron Munster
7. Daly Cherry-Evans (c)
8. Dunamis Lui
9. Jake Friend
10. Josh Papalii
11. Felise Kaufusi
12. Jaydn Su’A
13. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui
Interchange
14. Ben Hunt
15. Lindsay Collins
16. Jai Arrow
17. Moeaki Fotuaika
The back five had a very up-and-down night. Dane Gagai and Xavier Coates combined for an excellent opening try that will be replayed in years to come but didn’t show a lot else in the rest of the match.
Capewell struggled in defence but had a couple of dangerous-looking runs. These three will be retained.
Holmes was safe at the back but wasn’t attacking the New South Wales line as much as he could have been. His best position in Origin would be on the wing, and we all know how good a finisher he is.
Phillip Sami made several errors that led to tries for the Blues, so he will lose his spot for Game 3. Holmes takes Sami’s spot on the wing and Corey Allan is brought in to add some spark in the number one jumper.
An alternate possibility would be Brenko Lee going into the centres and Gagai moving out to the wing in place of Sami.
(Photo by Jono Searle/Getty Images)
Cameron Munster left the field two minutes into the game and never returned, but if he passes concussion protocols he will line up for sure. Cherry-Evans kept trying to get Queensland back in the game but was not being given a lot to work with. No change in the halves.
Dunamis Lui is a fantastic player for the Raiders, but he only got his shot because of Christian Welch’s injury, and his likely return will see Lui dropped. Jake Friend looked absolutely spent at the end of Game 2, and that may affect his performance in Game 3. This is why I would back Harry Grant to debut in the decider. He hasn’t played for a few weeks, but he’s been training with the squad and his running game could really help Queensland. Papalii had a quiet Game 2 but scored a solid try and will keep his spot.
The back row should stay the same, barring injury. Kaufusi and Su’A both had disappointing games, although Su’A occasionally looked threatening.
Fa’asuamaleaui lost his head and got into a scuffle with Payne Haas, but I was so happy to see the biff back in State of Origin that I wasn’t annoyed he got binned. Hopefully, he pulls it together next week.
The bench players in Game 2 had a lot of work to do after the loss of Cameron Munster and the poor performances of the starting forwards, and a couple stepped up to the plate.
Ben Hunt was probably expecting to come on a lot later in the game and ended up being given a lot of the kicking duties.
I wasn’t sold on Lindsay Collins before Game 1, but he’s proved he can perform well in the Origin arena.
Jai Arrow made good metres but his defence was a bit shaky. Moeaki Fotuaika was solid as a rock defensively, with 21 tackles and no misses, but only got three carries for 24 metres.
He deserves another shot, but Bennett may end up blooding another debutant in Patrick Carrigan or Josh Kerr.
So, my predicted team for Game 3 in Brisbane is as follows.
1. Corey Allan
2. Valentine Holmes (goal kicker)
3. Kurt Capewell
4. Dane Gagai
5. Xavier Coates
6. Cameron Munster
7. Daly Cherry-Evans (c)
8. Christian Welch
9. Harry Grant
10. Josh Papalii
11. Felise Kaufusi
12. Jaydn Su’A
13. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui
Interchange
14. Ben Hunt
15. Lindsay Collins
16. Jai Arrow
17. Patrick Carrigan
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