2017 STATE OF ORIGIN Wallace wants first shot at opposition
Open mind on future Blues camp
THIS may not be the final NSW camp outside Sydney.
NSW Rugby League chief executive Dave Trodden has declared all options for the future of the Blues’ State of Origin camps are on the table next year, including a return to Kingscliff.
It was believed the expected completion of a centre of excellence in Homebush this year would spell the end of the traditional 10-day Origin preparation away from Sydney.
However, Trodden admitted the Blues could be on the road again with construction on their new $20 million base, next to ANZ Stadium, behind schedule.
Options for 2018 include the possibility of returning to their current camp in Kingscliff, where they moved this year after spending recent campaigns in Coffs Harbour.
It was initially expected NSWRL would move into its new home, complete with playing field, gymnasium, administration block and hydrotherapy room, by the end of this year. FEW people would attempt to take on Maroons behemoth Dylan Napa, especially on Origin debut.
But Jarrod Wallace has revealed his one terse moment in Camp Maroon came ahead of his debut when he implored the big redhead to allow him to take the kick-off and plough into the Blues defenders.
Wallace was desperate to take the first hit-up to impress in his debut game for Queensland but Napa, with one game already under his belt, claimed seniority and took the ball himself.
“Me and Naps almost had a bit of a blue about it,” Wallace said, tongue firmly in cheek.
“We knew they were kicking off and I remember looking at him and just saying: ‘Come on man, just let me have the first one’.
“He literally said: ‘Nope, get out of my way’. Everyone wants that carry.”
It’s the single thing Wallace could fault in his introduction to Origin football, with the Titans front-rower still pinching himself at being a part of the Maroons set-up.
“I could never get used to this. I just want it forever,” Wallace said.
“If I could come into this camp every week for the rest of my life, I’d do it because it’s just an unreal feeling, the guys are outstanding, nothing beats it.”
Wallace played just 20 minutes in his Origin debut, with a concussion to Will Chambers late in the match disrupting the Maroons’ interchange rotations and foiling plans to inject him back into the match.
But he does not believe he needs to show he was worthy of a recall, saying it would be madness to attempt to do anything other than his job as Queensland try to win their 11th series in 12 years.
“If I play the game now I’m going to go out (exhausted) and that’s when errors start to happen because things are playing on my head,” he said.
“At the end of the day, we just want to get out there and make sure we do everything right.”
Queensland need to get on the front foot early though against a Blues pack that has dominated the early stages of both games.
It has had an impact of the ability of Queensland’s playmakers to get into the game too, with Cameron Smith having his statistically poorest series in memory, making just two runs for two runs for a total of eight metres in the opening two games.
“Me, Naps and (Josh) McGuire have obviously got a big job of trying to get our team on the front foot against a big pack,” Wallace said.
“They’re a lot bigger than us but that doesn’t matter at the end of the day.
“We want to go out and do our job and make sure that if we get on the front foot, it’s going to go a long way for our backs and make sure that we can bring the best hooker in the game (Smith) into it.
“It gives more opportunity for Smithy to play and Coops (Cooper Cronk) more time.”