BLUES TO TARGET MUNSTER
Dodgy ribs to be ‘tested’ in Origin series opener
Blues forward Liam Martin says he will “test out” Cameron Munster’s ribs after the Maroons five-eighth let slip he has been battling several injuries in the lead-up to the State of Origin opener in Adelaide on Wednesday.
The Storm playmaker said on Saturday he had been playing with a fractured rib and rib cartilage damage, as well as having a hyperextended elbow in the win over the Dolphins.
Munster said he expected the Blues to target him and encouraged them to “bring it on”.
“We’ll be testing it out – surely,” Martin said. “We’ll test it out and see what happens.
“It is sort of (music to the ears to hear he’s injured) but I don’t want to worry about it too much, otherwise it will distract us. But you definitely want to go after it.”
Too much focus on the Queensland veteran is a massive risk given he has shown he can play through pain and few defenders have been able to devise a plan to shut him down.
“He’s quite strong for his size and he fights like hell, so we will be doing everything we can to get him to the ground,” Martin said. “You just have to expect the unexpected with him. You can never switch off with him because you never know what he’s going to do. He’s very successful so we will be on high alert around him.”
NSW rookie Hudson Young will be on the other side of the field when the game kicks off, so it’s unlikely he will be able to tackle Munster – not that he thinks the rep star is as sore as he is making out. “I’m sure his ribs aren’t as bad as he says they are,” he said.
Young, 24, has other things to focus on when he makes his Origin debut after overcoming g a series of hurdles early in his career. areer.
The Raiders ers forward was as out for two o years after he tested positive to a banned sub- stance, while le he has served ved two separate bans for eye-gouging ging incidents, one of which cost him a spot in the 2019 grand final.
Young has mellowed but maintained the aggression and off-the-cuff off- c skills that have impressed Blues coa coach Brad Fittler. Young said his coach c at Canberra had played the biggest part in his career and paid p tribute to R Ricky Stuart for helping hel him after his bans.
“I needed need tough love,” said Young, who described Stuart as a father figure to all young men who leave home to play for the Raiders.
“There was no point giving me a pat on the back for something I did wrong.
“He controlled it really well and he reads people really well. That’s probably the biggest thing about him – he knows how to read people and he’s done it with all his players.
“Everyone who has gone there loves him and he has the same influence on everyone.
“You can see how passionate he is and that’s why everyone plays for him.
“He hates losing, as do all footy players, but he takes it to a new level and I feel that’s rubbed off on me. I hate losing.”