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It’s like Origin started early. The beginning of the NRL season saw a renaissance north of the Tweed, with a fourth Queensland team in the mix and the original Maroon standard bearer back to their best.
The Broncos and Dolphins have been the highlights for Queensland footy in 2023, but the Titans and Cowboys had their moments too, with Magic Round the first time that all four representatives from the Sunshine State had won on the same weekend.
But since then, the tables have turned. Look at the NRL ladder today, and it’s New South Wales all the way: Panthers top, then Souths, then the Sharks in third.
Moreover, the match-ups between the sides that have the most Maroons players and those that contribute the most to the Blues have made for sorry reading for Queensland fans.
It began well enough early on, with the Broncos nipping a win over Penrith in Round 1 and the Dolphins marking their arrival in the NRL with a crushing win over James Tedesco’s Roosters. Melbourne, with Cam Munster and Harry Grant to the fore, did for Parramatta as well.
But in the last months, things have begun to look ominous. The Bunnies thrashed the Dolphins and Broncos on their own turf, then did for the Storm – quasi-Queenslanders – too.
Penrith made light work of Brisbane last week, too, and the Cowboys have copped batterings off the Sharks and the Wests Tigers.
There had been a feeling among many that the draw had been kinder to the Queensland teams, and pitted big NSW outfits against one another in early season clashes.
Now, with attention turning to rep footy, that might begin to play into those clubs’ hands, with the bulk of Blues players being more battle-hardened thanks to their tougher schedules at club level.
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Notably, the Panthers and Souths have put on big runs of form in recent weeks to rocket them up the table, with Blues lock Isaah Yeo suggesting that Penrith’s difficult beginning to their Premiership defence would assist in wresting the Shield back for New South Wales.
“It’s not just the last few weeks,” said Yeo of the Panthers’ recent form.
“Over the body of work, we’ve been in every contest. Even our losses have been tight, so you’re having to play and compete for 80 minutes.
“That’s going to hold us in good stead going into Origin where it’s the toughest 80 minutes you can have.
“I feel like our body of work has really helped us and got our attack flowing together, but our defence has always been good. That’s what you need to do at this level and it’s definitely given me confidence.”
It’s not just his side, too. Souths have had to be at their best on multiple occasions to defeat other NRL frontrunners, with Cam Murray and Latrell Mitchell playing starring roles in their rise to the top of the ladder.
According to Yeo, that can only mean good things for NSW.
“Souths have been outstanding too,” he said. “So much comes off Cam and off the back of that there’s Latrell and he’s been outstanding as well.
“They deserve to be spoken out at the highest level at the moment. It’s a good thing because it means you’re in form coming in.