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Blues player ratings: Cleary almost perfect but Panthers teammate is 3/10 after 'worst game'

27th June, 2022
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27th June, 2022
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Nathan Cleary and James Tedesco inspired the Blues as they thumped Queensland 44-12 in Origin II to level the series and send it to a decider. Here’s how the Blues rated.

CLICK HERE FOR QUEENSLAND RATINGS

1. James Tedesco: Played out of his skin. Ran the ball back with vigour all night. 265 metres. Played creator and metre gainer. Superb game. 8.5/10

2. Brian To’o: A massive 261 metres and a massive effort. Safe all night in defence too, and rewarded with a try. 7.5/10

3. Matt Burton: The lad from Dubbo didn’t look out of place at all. Scored a try and was solid in defence. 7/10

4. Stephen Crichton: The Panther was quite ordinary in attack and defence. About the worst game I’ve seen him play, even including his try assist. 3/10

5. Daniel Tupou: The tall Roosters’ usual strong game in attack and defence. Scored a good try and ran 200 metres. 6.5/10

6. Jerome Luai: Scored a good individual try but otherwise had a pretty meh game. Five missed tackles was pretty poor. 4.5/10

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Jarome Luai of the Blues drops the ball in a tackle during game two of the State of Origin series between New South Wales Blues and Queensland Maroons at Optus Stadium, on June 26, 2022, in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Jarome Luai of the Blues drops the ball in a tackle. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

7. Nathan Cleary: Took a little bit of time to warm up but then put in his best-ever performance in Sky Blue, answering all his critics from game one (including myself). Two tries in a 24 point haul was a just reward for a superb organisation, passing, running and kicking game. 9.5/10

8. Payne Haas: The big unit was OK. He wasn’t bad but he didn’t star. He certainly has a few more gears in him. 5.5/10

9. Api Koroisau: Replaced after 37 minutes. Did nothing wrong, but also didn’t shine in a short stint. 4/10

10. Jake Trbojevic: Jake had a big match with 16 runs, 143 metres and 32 tackles. He certainly earned his pay. Like his haircut, it wasn’t flashy but it was effective. 8/10

Nathan Cleary celebrates

(Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

11. Cameron Murray: Hit high by Murray Taulagi in the 8th minute. He was quieter than usual but his effort when he was on was as good as you’d expect. 6.5/10

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12. Liam Martin: Not as big as his game one effort but by no means a poor effort. Got replaced by Talakai in the second half. 6/10

13. Isaah Yeo: Worked hard in attack and defence without dominating in either but a strong effort. 6.5/10

14: Damien Cook: Came on after 30 minutes and gave decent service. Conceded two penalties and missed three tackles. 5/10

15. Angus Crichton: Scored a try, set another up in a serviceable performance in his return to the NSW side. 6/10

16. Junior Paulo: Was clearly stung by criticism after game one and really stepped up. Made immediate impact off the bench in attack and was also strong in defence, even stealing a ball. 8/10

17. Siosifa Talakai: Only had a short stint but was willing to hurl himself into the fray. 4/10

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