Chaos or calculated risks? History repeats with Brad Fittler’s constant selection gambles

When an 18-year-old Brad Fittler made history as the youngest NSW Origin player in 1990, it was an era of selection chaos at the Blues which occasionally worked but often didn’t.

The man who gave him the Freddie nickname, Jack Gibson, was coming to the end of his tumultuous two-year stint as coach and NSW had lost eight straight coming into that series (setting aside the 1988 exhibition game in LA). 

Blues selectors churned through players ad nauseam while Queensland retained their nucleus of loyal foot soldiers – sound familiar?

In Gibson’s two-year tenure alone, no less than 39 players wore the NSW sky-blue jersey across six games. Not once did they keep the same halves combination. 

Jack Gibson during his time as NSW coach.

But after a 3-0 whitewash in ‘89, they managed to come away with a 2-1 series win the following year despite the huge turnover in player personnel to send the original super coach out a winner in the final foray of his decorated career. 

Fittler made his debut off the bench in Origin’s first venture to a neutral venue – Melbourne’s old Olympic Park. 

His introduction to Origin as a player was NSW in a state of flux and he’s brought a similar mindset to his stint as coach since taking the reins from Laurie Daley in 2018.

While the Maroons continue their chorus of loyalty to their stalwarts, Fittler has not been afraid to chop and change his squad from game to game.

When it works, he’s hailed as an outside-the-box thinker but when it doesn’t, he cops an avalanche of criticism, such as his controversial decisions to pick firebrands Tevita Pangai jnr and Hudson Young in his starting side for Origin I in Adelaide last month.

At their best, both players can destroy opponents with their physical style but they are prone to giving away penalties and making costly errors, which came back to bite the Blues in their 26-18 fade-out loss. 

As is the case annually in Origin, the losing coach from game one faces the dilemma of sticking with the players that he thought were the best options to start the series or wielding the axe to avoid making the same mistakes in the must-win second match. 

Brad Fittler still holds the record for the youngest NSW State of Origin representative.

Form and tactical issues aside, Fittler is hoping one change for Origin II will be star centre Latrell Mitchell being cleared to play from the calf strain which forced him out in Adelaide while he has to pick a new halfback following Nathan Cleary’s hamstring tear on the weekend. 

He didn’t get good news from Souths about Mitchell on Tuesday with coach Jason Demetriou saying there was doubt about whether the 25-year-old would be ready for Origin II where he would probably also assume the NSW goal-kicking duties from Cleary.

Whether Fittler makes wholesale changes or not, you could say it’s a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation for him.

But that is the coach’s responsibility and all the fans care about – not whether he makes too many or not enough changes but whether they’re the right ones. Off contract after this series, he needs to nail these selections if the Blues are any hope of winning the next two games to ensure Fittler gets another deal with the NSWRL.

Blues coach Brad Fittler (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

A history of change under Freddie

2018

When he took over from Daley for the 2018 series, Fittler put a broom through the team that had lost the previous year with only Boyd Cordner, Jake Trbojevic, David Klemmer, Tyson Frizell, James Tedesco and James Maloney. 

Among the 11 new faces were debutants Nathan Cleary, Damien Cook, Josh Addo-Carr and Angus Crichton, who would play a large part in Fittler’s early success as coach as the Blues won three out of four series.

For game two he only needed to make one change when Reagan Campbell-Gillard was injured and Blues fans got an early glimpse of Fittler’s left-field selection strategy.

Sharks workhorse Matt Prior was catapulted into the side at age 31 after a lengthy discussion over whether younger Titans option Ryan James should get the nod. 

Prior ended up playing 33 minutes in his only ever Origin as the Blues won their second straight match under Fittler to get their hands on the shield for the first time since 2014. 

He was replaced with Tariq Sims for the series finale in the only change to the team as the Maroons avoided a whitewash. 

Matt Prior in 2018. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

2019

Series two of the Freddie Fittler experience brought about his most drastic selection gamble of all.

After a narrow defeat in Brisbane in game one, he punted Latrell Mitchell, Cody Walker, Crichton and Josh Morris while David Klemmer (wrist), Payne Haas (hamstring) and Nick Cotric (ankle) were ruled out. 

Maloney, Blake Ferguson, Tom Trbojevic, Daniel Saifiti, Dale Finucane, Wade Graham and Sims were brought in and the mass changes again paid dividends with NSW thumping Queensland 38-6.

And even when Cleary was injured for the decider, Fittler’s decision to bring Mitchell Pearce back for redemption after years of being Queensland’s whipping boy also came up trumps when Tedesco’s last-minute try sealed a 26-20 triumph. 

2020 

The pandemic-delayed series is an outlier in many ways given all three matches were played in November after the grand final.

There was upheaval everywhere, particularly in the Sunshine State when Kevin Walters vacated the coaching post a few weeks before Origin because he’d landed the Broncos gig and Wayne Bennett was jettisoned in at the last minute.

In scenes reminiscent of the 1995 boilover for the ages, Bennett fashioned a team out of players who never played Origin before or since like Dunamis Lui, Edrick Lee, Phil Sami and Corey Allan, to record a 2-1 series upset.

Fittler’s main indecision at the selection table revolved around five-eighth with Luke Keary getting the first game before he was dumped for Cody Walker.

Cody Walker (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

2021

This was by far the most stable series for NSW selection wise and when you win 50-6 then 26-0 in the first two games, it ain’t even close to broke so don’t fix anything. 

Only injuries to Jake Trbojevic after game one and then Cleary and Jarome Luai for the dead rubber third match forced changes – Mitchell Moses and Jack Wighton partnered in the halves as the Maroons saved face with a 20-18 upset. 

2022

After Billy Slater guided Queensland to victory in his first match at the helm, Fittler again shook up his side after controversially leaving Jake Trbojevic out.

The Manly forward was brought back into the pack for Tariq Sims while debutants Kotoni Staggs and Ryan Matterson were dumped and Cook was relegated to the interchange after 13 straight starts in the No.9 jersey. 

And again the new-look side with Matt Burton and Siosifa Talakai responded with a 44-12 cakewalk in Perth.

In the lead-up to the series decider, Fittler overlooked his best game-one performer in Wighton (who was available to play again after a bout of COVID-19 ruled him out of Origin II) while making another left-field selection in bringing Knights prop Jacob Saifiti in to make his debut but the gambles backfired as the Maroons won 22-12 to regain the shield.

Tevita Pangai jnr. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

2023  

Fittler again produced a few surprising calls for the series opener in Adelaide with fiery debutants Tevita Pangai jnr and Hudson Young named to start while more experienced and even-keeled options Liam Martin, Junior Paulo and Cameron Murray warmed the bench.

The theory was that Paulo and Young would fight fire with fire in the opening exchanges with Queensland’s big boppers but it turned out to be another case of Fittler overthinking things with the rookie duo shooting the team in the foot a few times with their reckless play.