Blues hype believers always a good laugh
Most exciting NSW side assembled? Pah! Maroons fans needn’t worry
WE hear the same old story every year.
Apparently it’s “the most exciting NSW side assembled”, it’s “the one to beat Queensland” and there’s that predictable chestnut of how “the Maroons have lost their aura”.
Just as predictably, the bookies have believed the hype and put the Blues, complete with 11 debutants, at outrageous odds of $1.60 compared to $2.40 for Queensland.
If I’m being fair to NSW, it’s at worst a flip of the coin job, since no one really knows how our southern neighbours are going to go.
But rather than just scream blue murder, I’m going to break it down for you and point out several reasons nothing will change and why Maroons fans shouldn’t worry about what NSW think they have to offer.
Apparently the best thing about this NSW team is they’re picked on form. Doing that at club level is one thing but without previous combinations, many could struggle.
The buzz is all around Latrell Mitchell, a bloke who made two runs in his last game, and James Roberts, who has gone into camp under an injury cloud and will mark Greg Inglis, now armed with the captaincy. It will be Inglis v Steve Turner Mark II.
The Blues have a decent halves pairing, I’ll give them that, but how many halves have they trotted out only for their careers to be destroyed a mere few years later?
In comparison, Cameron Munster is doing Munster things and one NSW fan I know reckons Ben Hunt is the “form player of the competition”.
So Queensland wins the backline battle, for a change, even without JT and Cronk.
Replacing Cameron Smith with Andrew McCullough isn’t half bad either, but even as a biased Broncos fan, I can admit opposing hooker Damian Cook will be the most dangerous player on the field next Wednesday.
On the NSW pack, David Klemmer and Boyd Cordner are horribly out of form, but it’s probably a stalemate with our front row of Dylan Napa and Jarrod Wallace.
We’ve got proven pedigree in Josh McGuire and Gavin Cooper and Felise Kaufsui is in red-hot form. All in all, it’s pretty even. What NSW really lack, surprisingly, is spark from the bench. Other than Tyrone Peachey, I fail to see a player who will capitalise on any Maroon tiredness. Yet we’ve got steamrollers like Coen Hess (better used off the bench I feel) and Josh Papalii.
You would be a fool to believe NSW will be anything more than the wet blanket they’ve been in recent Origin history. But who are we to not let them believe the hype?
Let’s just hope Valentine Holmes can kick goals.