Could Downs talent save Qld?

EACH weekend The Chronicle sport team looks at pressing issues on the Saturday Soapbox.

Q: Who will be the next player from the Darling Downs to play State of Origin?

Ben Drewe: THIS one is a tricky question as one injury can change the landscape completely.

But looking at it with players fit, former Brothers junior and Harristown State High School graduate Ashley Taylor looks capable of being the next Maroon from the Downs.

Johnathan Thurston and Cooper Cronk may not play on beyond this year in the Origin arena so spots in the halves could open up.

Taylor is certainly in the running for a spot in the coming years along with the likes of Anthony Milford, Michael Morgan and Daly Cherry-Evans.

The likes of Dalby’s Andrew McCullough and Goondiwindi’s Ethan Lowe are also close to selection, so hopefully another player from the Downs will break into Origin soon.

Anton Rose: I HAVE to agree with Ben.

The talent of Ashley Taylor is undeniable.

McCullough may be in the Maroons’ training squad but Taylor is certainly playing some unbelievable footy at the moment.

As the old guard of Thurston and Cronk eventually step away from State of Origin, it is going to be hard to look past the man who leads the way with 19 try assists for the Titans in the NRL this season.

The other options have proved less than viable in the past, the likes of Daly Cherry-Evans and Anthony Milford have not exactly set the world on fire when called upon.

Q: Who will win Origin II and why?

Ben Drewe: THE changes to the Queensland team definitely make the Maroons much stronger.

Not many people would have seen the game one score coming and I think Wednesday’s game will be much closer.

The Maroons forward pack looks stronger and capable of taking it to the New South Wales big men who were dominant in the series opener.

And while the Blues made winning away look easy in game one, I think the Maroons will push NSW the whole way but the hosts should win by about four points.

Anton Rose: THE first game showed that a genuine momentum shift is definitely on the cards.

Many highlighted New South Wales’ inability to shake free the Origin deadwood that endured the era of “eight straight” and find decent replacements in a timely fashion as the reason for a generation of disappointment.

I fear Queensland are now on the verge of receiving some comeuppance in that regard.

The Maroons side that will run out next Wednesday is one that will see a number of new combinations put to the test.

Fans singled out Queensland’s ability to select a consistent team for years on end as the foundation for their dominance against the Blues.

But with Kevin Walters wielding the axe and scrambling around for bigger forwards like a headless chicken, I don’t expect the new recruits to survive the baptism of fire in enemy territory.

Like game one, it will be close, but to sound like a broken record, NSW by four.