PONGA PICKING SLATER’S BRAIN

EMMA GREENWOOD

WHIZ kid, prodigy, effortless superstar – the descriptions of Kalyn Ponga make you wonder whether he’ll be hiding a cape under his Maroon jersey on Sunday night as he waits to make his Origin debut in one of the most anticipated contests in years.

The Mackay product is not the Maroons’ saviour, but he is tailor-made for Origin.

It’s his work ethic though, rather than his obvious skill and flair, that should make the difference when he faces down the Blues.

Ponga, who gained permission from his Kiwi relatives to represent Queensland, doesn’t want to be seen as some sort of super-human freak.

“My family means a lot to me and getting their acceptance (to represent Queensland) was very important to me,” he said.

“Once I got that I was very

IF YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY IN FRONT OF YOU, YOU SHOULD BE DEMANDING THE BALL. — KALYN PONGA

happy with my decision, but obviously I knew making the decision was not going to get you anywhere. You have to put in a lot of hard work and that’s what I’ve done to get here.”

Maroons coach Kevin Walters said this week that Ponga could be a long-term player for the Maroons.

But Ponga is not willing to take anything for granted.

“Although Kevvie says that, there’s a lot of hard work that goes behind it,” he said.

“Obviously I want to be here for a while but there’s a lot of hard work to do that.”

That work started in the days before game one when Ponga

was called into camp at the 11th hour as cover for the injured Billy Slater, before Queensland eventually went with Anthony Milford off the bench.

But in that short time in camp, Ponga started learning from master fullback Slater as though cramming for an exam.

Ponga was just six years old when Slater made his Origin debut in 2004 and is determined to learn all he can from his hero, who will retire from Origin at the end of the series.

“He’s someone I’ve looked up to and now that I’m here, I’m looking forward to picking his brain and I’ve done so already,” Ponga said.

Like Slater, who scored one of Origin’s great individual tries in just his second game for the Maroons, Ponga will have no hesitation in attacking if the opportunity arises – and will do so with his hero’s backing.

“He’s an exciting player and I’m sure he’s going to do a great

job for Queensland,” Slater said.

“He’s certainly going to be a great attribute for us coming on to the field when the Blues are a little bit tired and he’s nice and fresh.”

Ponga said his goal was to replicate his club form in the sport’s biggest arena.

“My role is just to come on and play the way I’ve been playing at clubland and use my skill set,” he said.

“The way I play, don’t shy away from that and use it on the field when I get on there.

“I’ve got the opportunity to learn off Billy over the next (few) days and I’ll look to do that, but at the end of the day I’m here to offer what I’ve got and that’s how I’m going to go about it.

“If you have an opportunity in front of you, you should be demanding the ball.

“If I demand the ball, it’s because I have an opportunity in front of me and I’ll do it.”