Cowboy Clifford gets one on Blues
COWBOYS prodigy Jake Clifford last night led the Queensland under- 20s to their first victory over their NSW counterparts, with the Justin Hodges- coached side claiming a 30- 12 win.
The young halfback – who is a leading contender to replace Johnathan Thurston at North Queensland next year – scored a double, set up Tristan Sailor for another and played a hand in Kurt Wiltshire’s fourpointer to help deliver the historic victory at Suncorp Stadium.
Clifford had been in outstanding form for the Northern Pride in the Intrust Super Cup this year and brought his class to the under- 20s clash, which was the curtain raiser to Origin III.
It was a stunning performance from the entire side, ending six years of pain for Queensland, but Clifford was the one to walk away with the man- of- the- match honours.
“Six years we’ve been waiting for this,” Clifford said after the game. “A lot of pressure was on us to get one back on NSW. We worked our butts off all week and to put on a performance like that and come away with the win, can’t be more proud.”
Clifford told the Townsville Bulletin this week that he would compete with Michael Morgan for Thurston’s No. 7 spot at the Cowboys.
“If I don’t get a game this year, so be it, but I’ll be putting my best foot forward over the next pre- season to try and cement a spot in that position,” he said.
The annual under- 20s fixture started in 2012 and has been dominated by NSW until last night’s showdown.