[MrXYZ]

Game 2 was shaping up as another classic but instead they may as well skip it & go straight to the decider. Can't believe Ferguson is that dumb. You got dozens of players who never get an Origin call up and this clown just throws it away.

[Tim Gerry Mander]

QLD Team - Game 2

1. Billy Slater
2. Darius Boyd
3. Greg Inglis
4. Justin Hodges
5. Brent Tate
6. Johnathan Thurston
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Matt Scott
9. Cameron Smith
10. Nate Myles
11. Chris McQueen
12. Sam Thaiday
13. Corey Parker
14. Daly Cherry-Evans
15. Ben Te'o
16. Matt Gillett
17. Josh Papalii

18th man: Martin Kennedy
Can't believe the Maroons didn't name any props again on the bench, then dropped Shillington in the process and replaced him with a halfback.
They now start game 2 with only 1 recognised prop in Scott, with Myles and Thaiday expected to shoulder the burden up the middle.
I really think NSW can belt them into submission in the ruck and that should be enough to get them a win up at Suncorp and end the nightmare.

Carn the Blues!

[s2230011]

I think you will find that Parker will play like an extra prop, he has been doing that for Broncos in the last couple of games, just look at his Meters gained lately, been just raming it up with an offload.

[dRavidC]

i don't think Thurston and Inglis will be as quiet as they were in game I. whether that consitutes a QLD win remains to be seen.

[sando]

QLD by far the superior team in game II however if there has ever been a bigger bunch of precious little whingers in the history of professional sport then I would be amazed.

Would be hilarious if a serious blue ever broke out. Fake tough guys like Thaiday, Slater & Hodges would be exposed badly. Maybe 3-4 guys on the entire Maroons list that can genuinely handle themselves. Yeah NSW are a team of thugs but it's a rough sport. Oh how sweet it would have been if Peace had of KTFO that dirty little Slater. Kid gets tackled hard and had to resort to dirty tactics, been doing it for years. No surprise the judiciary gave their precious little pin up boy another reprieve today. Hilarious.

Would not be surprised if Gallen, Bird & Fifita could take out half the Maroons list by themselves...

Ok rant over, I just despise the maroons so much and if I was a religious man I would pray to Jebus that QLD gets thoroughly humiliated in game III and fat Meninga and his "dad's army" gets buried once and for all.

[Tim Gerry Mander]

Let's hope the Blues can bring it home in Game 3 and end this terrible canetoad plague.

And then Kevin Rudd gets what he deserves too whenever he decides to call the election.

Merritt surely can't get another start in a decider - he'll just get owned again by Inglis.
Hopefully Hayne is back by then.

We just need another Bird and Gallen and we'd be unstoppable.

[sando]

Definitely need some minor changes.

Merritt and Woods out, Hayne and Tamou back in.

Leave Dugan at FB and play Hayne in the centres? Dugan was NSW's best player in game II.

It's too late to drop Pearce/Maloney now with 1 game to go, although if Maloney can't play then they could bring J. Reynolds into the starting line up @ 5/8?

Next year I can see a halves pairing of Reynolds/Reynolds. Win or lose this series Pearce is done with Origin I believe, the HB is simply too important a position and he hasn't been delivering the results.

Fifita into the starting line-up and partnered with Tamou is a scary front row. Lewis and Bird in the 2nd row and Gallen at lock, with Merrin, Hoffman and Watmough rotating through.

Jennings or J-moz on the bench as the impact player and Hayne in the centres? Fukc it, bring Fergie back and play a Hayne/Fergo centre pairing, good enough to match it with Hodges/Inglis.

Flying down to Sydney to watch game III, hopefully it will be one of the happiest nights of my life...?

[s2230011]

I wouldn't put Hayne in the centres. He deserves his fullback spot back but I would put him on the wing for Merrit and leave Dugan.
Fafita off the bench is a find and I would leave him there for a bit of impact. Merrin should take a leaf out of his book.
I would get rid of woods and watmough, I think bird Lewis and gallen should be playing around 70 mins with the big boys on and off.
Jmoz has done very well with his origin appearances so far, has the hardest job on the field and has been excellent. BMoz is the best winger in the country by a mile. I would have picked Tafoua for game two, but now I would rather have Hayne and Dugan on the field
Our kicking game is the issue .. They get that right we are in the game.
I would definitely pick Sutton on the bench. He is a better option than Reynolds

[s2230011]

I wouldn't put Hayne in the centres. He deserves his fullback spot back but I would put him on the wing for Merrit and leave Dugan.
Fafita off the bench is a find and I would leave him there for a bit of impact. Merrin should take a leaf out of his book.
I would get rid of woods and watmough, I think bird Lewis and gallen should be playing around 70 mins with the big boys on and off.
Jmoz has done very well with his origin appearances so far, has the hardest job on the field and has been excellent. BMoz is the best winger in the country by a mile. I would have picked Tafoua for game two, but now I would rather have Hayne and Dugan on the field
Our kicking game is the issue .. They get that right we are in the game.
I would definitely pick Sutton on the bench. He is a better option than Reynolds

[sando]

I wouldn't put Hayne in the centres. He deserves his fullback spot back but I would put him on the wing for Merrit and leave Dugan.
Fafita off the bench is a find and I would leave him there for a bit of impact. Merrin should take a leaf out of his book.
I would get rid of woods and watmough, I think bird Lewis and gallen should be playing around 70 mins with the big boys on and off.
Jmoz has done very well with his origin appearances so far, has the hardest job on the field and has been excellent. BMoz is the best winger in the country by a mile. I would have picked Tafoua for game two, but now I would rather have Hayne and Dugan on the field
Our kicking game is the issue .. They get that right we are in the game.
I would definitely pick Sutton on the bench. He is a better option than Reynolds

I agree with everything you said mate, except Hayne on the wing. He's too dynamic to be hidden on the wing. Maybe Hayne off the bench as our impact back? Also agree with Sutton over Reynolds but that is all irrelevant now, Daley has made his choice and Reynolds will almost definitely start @ stand-off if Maloney doesn't pull up.

[s2230011]

I think carney would have a chance with Reynolds still benching

[benrama]

I'd bring Carney back in, Hayne has to go back to FB and I'd have Dugan as an impact player off the bench. Merritt is gone, and get rid of Pearce too, bring in Adam Reynolds, all this talk of him being too green is BS.

Why are you guys so big on the Morris brothers? I think they are highly over rated, they can run straight and fast but can't offload or put a decent kick in to save themselves, which are critical skills at the top level.

[sando]

Must admit Benny I'm a massive fan of the Morris bro's as well. I think they fall into the "love em or hate em" mold. Won't argue with can't offload or kick arguments, however their rare combination of speed and power is second only to Inglis in my opinion, plus they are both great open field runners with nasty fends and decent steps.

I would give anything to get the Souths halves in to the blues team, specifically Adam Reynolds, however the combo of Reynolds/Sutton would surely be far more dangerous than Pearce/Maloney, plus Reynolds is the 2nd best goal kicker in the league (behind sezer not JT) which would be handy.

[benrama]

I will give you that, with some space they are hard to bring down. I just think they were shown up as a little one dimensional in game 2, lets see how they go for the decider - there's more important selection decisions.

I think NSW has to try to match QLD for skill and I think the Reynolds/Sutton pairing makes a lot of sense and they already have the chemistry at club level. I'd also settle for Reynolds/Carney, that'd actually give NSW the kicking edge which we know is huge for SOO.

Pearce must have some photos of the Blues selection panel with coke and hookers, that's the only explanation I have for
sticking with him

[s2230011]

I love the Morris' cause their is no nonsense. Brett picks up the ball no matter what position on the field and runs as hard as possible. After contact he always makes a few more meters. Give me that every game .. No other winger does.

Anyway, I think they won't change the halves with one game left. But Adam Reynolds strengths are where we are lacking. Either way Sutton for bench would be one of the first changes I would make .

[Tim Gerry Mander]

The fact is that our pack was belted in game 2 and the rest of the team suffered.
Maloney was great in game 1, no coincidence our pack dominated and he had the space and time to shine.
I am no fan of Pearce and he shouldn't have even got a start this series, but to drop him now and put someone else in is unfair on the person coming in - not to mention that it also won't happen.
Having said that though, do you go in with the same bloke who could only win you one game last year when our forwards dominated theirs all series?

Dugan was OK to start, but made some horrible mistakes to gift QLD possession in our red zone - You can't knock on every time a ball is put in the air - it not only gives the opposition the ball in good field position, it demoralises your own team after they have just put on a solid defensive set. What do you think QLD will be doing in game 3 if Dugan is at the back?

Hayne has to play for us to have a chance, be it at fullback or on the wing. Why would you play him in the centres? You have two very capable players already there, no need to make more changes for the sake of it.

I'd pick Michael Gordon on the other wing, who can also play fullback as well as offering another goal-kicking option.

We need another prop on the bench, bring in Tamou or Grant.
Not sold on Reynolds being used the way he was - really lacked direction all game, not helped with Gallen having to come off for a couple of stints.

I was a big fan of Watmough, but he was very ordinary in game 2 and made a host of handling errors when he came on.

Is Sutton the answer? Not sure, he is playing well for the Rabbits, but again the biggest reason for this is that their pack is dominating opposition teams, making it easier for him and Reynolds to shine.

Hoffman offers nothing either, needs to make room for another ball player.

When is Snake back? Will his brother be fit enough for Origin 3?

1. Hayne/Stewart B
2. Morris B
3. Jennings
4. Morris J
5. Gordon/Hayne
6. Maloney
7. Reynolds A
8. Grant
9. Farah
10. Tamou
11. Lewis
12. Gallen
13. Bird

14. Reynolds J
15. Stewart G
16. Merrin
17. Fifita

Carn the Blues!!

[benrama]

Not sure Blues pack was that dominated, the metres difference between the two was neglible. Parker and Scott did have absolute corkers though.

I have no issues with bringing in a new halves combination for SOO3. Take away the initial burst in game 1 and we've been thoroughly outplayed ever since, and it's been the difference in the back row that's been obvious. I also happen to think Adam Reynolds will in years to come be one of the first chosen in any representative side in the game, so why not pick him now?

OK - I realise it's not going to happen. We just have to hope then for another quiet game for Inglis/Slater (unlikely), and that we get some luck in SOO3, otherwise it could be deja vu - all over again.

[sando]

.

1. Hayne/Stewart B
2. Morris B
3. Jennings
4. Morris J
5. Gordon/Hayne
6. Maloney
7. Reynolds A
8. Grant
9. Farah
10. Tamou
11. Lewis
12. Gallen
13. Bird

14. Reynolds J
15. Stewart G
16. Merrin
17. Fifita

Carn the Blues!!

Mate I know your not a Dugan fan but I'm almost certain they won't drop him now after he was the Blues best in game II (although that doesn't mean much - they were all poor). The Stewart brothers are my favourite players period, but I don't think think they'll bring snake back in so fresh from his injury woes, they already have the Hayne/Dugan dilemma.

The thing is Daley can't make too many changes or it will appear he is panicking, although some are of course inevitable.

Woods = no chance. Tamou will be bought back in for sure, and Grant has to be a chance as well, now that his hand is healed and he was arguably NSW's best forward last year.

Merritt = Probably a straight swap for Hayne, although I have a sick feeling Daley will give him another chance. Only if Fergie miraculously finds his way back into the team is Merritt 100% gone. Personally I would take Tafua in a heartbeat over Merritt (and I'm a big Souths fan - grew up in Redfern).

As much as we all want Reynolds, it's not happening til next year. No way in hell does Daley change the halves now with 1 game to go. Only issue is if Maloney can't lace up the boots, but he's a tough fukcer so will probably be ready to go.

After thinking a lot about the likely team this is what I think they'll go with. (Not my preferred team by any means but the team I think we'll see on the park).

1. Dugan
2. B. Moz
3. Jennings (Ferguson if available)
4. J. Moz
5. Hayne
6. Maloney
7. Pearce
8. Gallen
9. Farrah
10. Tamou
11. Hoffman
12. Lewis
13. Bird

14. J. Reynolds
15. T. Grant
16. Fifita
17. Watmough

*They'll keep Dugan at FB and play Hayne in the 3/4 line for two reasons.
1. Most people believe that Dugan is a superior positional player to Hayne.
2. Hayne is proven on the wing - Dugan isn't.

** A healthy Grant has to be selected, so either Watmough or Merrin makes way and I'm leaning towards Merrin, because he was a naughty boy in Origin II and Watmough has given years of high quality service to NSW, one bad game in Origin II wont see Watmough dropped. No way does Hoffman get dropped. Personally I don't really rate him as much other than a workhorse (and we have plenty of those already), however it doesn't matter what I think, it matters what Daley thinks and no way does he drop him. As I said I would LOVE to see Glenn Stewart back in the side but Daley won't make too many changes, it will reek of panic and the dirty Maroons will feed off it.

This will be the side for Origin III boys, mark my words. NSW has been prone to over-reacting to bad games (especially under Sticky) and making too many changes, won't happen under Daley he is a cool customer and will be reinforcing the self belief that virtually the same side took into game I, hence changes will be kept to an absolute minimum.

[Tim Gerry Mander]

Not sure which game you were watching Sando, but Dugan was definitely not our best.
Greg Bird was my standout for the Blues, even though he copped 10 in the bin for joining the melee.
Forget Ferguson, he'll be lucky to play first grade again this year, let alone Origin.
We need at least 2 props on the bench, meaning Tamou, Fifita and Grant all have to play.
Gallen obviously can't play 80 minutes at present, but Luke Lewis and Bird can.
I am prepared to give Watmough another chance as when he is on, his footwork up the middle can get NSW on the front foot.

Again, it all comes back to our kicking game.
It is woeful, constantly finding the opposition back 3 on the full when kicking long, and failing to get repeat sets when in attack.
As Benrama said, Pearce must have some real good dirt on NSW selectors.

[sando]

What game was I watching? I've watched the whole game twice and listened to the MMM call as well. I am obsessed with origin.

Dugan was the best of a very ordinary bunch. The NSW FB is always the one under the most pressure in origin games featuring Smith, Cronk & co so naturally he was going to make some mistakes.

Mate are you aware that even the Blues players themselves voted Dugan as best player in game II ??

[hawley]

Sando you are making out like Dugan was a standout.

None of the Blues were. Didn't Dugan put down a couple of bombs in the second half?

Where was Dugan sweeping around in cover defence when QLD kept exploiting NSW's right edge?

[sando]

Sando you are making out like Dugan was a standout.

None of the Blues were. Didn't Dugan put down a couple of bombs in the second half?

Where was Dugan sweeping around in cover defence when QLD kept exploiting NSW's right edge?

I hear what your saying mate, he did indeed put down a couple but they were hammering him relentlessly and he also took a couple with ease that others would have struggled with, resulting in quick meterage out of the red zone.

He definitely made plenty of errors, his positional play was not bad, it's just that QLD possession on the back of penalties, completion rates and low error counts was very high and time in opposition half was relentless.

The NSW FB job was a horrible job to have in Origin II.

Dugan was simply the best of a very average bunch, but far from great himself.

He will still be in the team come Origin III.

[Tim Gerry Mander]

Sorry mate, don't rate him - he's a phucking whining soft c0ck.
What he did at Canberra just shows his character - not willing to put the hard yards in.
Yes he took a few good bombs early on, but he made a hash of heaps more later in the game, putting us under more pressure.
He might be good in attack, but defensively he's not in the top 5 fullbacks for mine.

I don't know what it is, but as soon as you play for the Roosters or the Dragons, you are automatically in the frame for an Origin jersey.

[s2230011]

Dugan played origin when he was at Canberra. Since joining the Dragons he has been the best fullback in the game, which warranted selection considering Stewart and Hayne were out.

Whether u liked his performance or not he was our most dangerous attacker. Only player looked like breaking the line. In Origin with his size and footwork I would pick him ahead of Stewart but Hayne brings similar attributes and fits well. I would have them both just because boy do we need to keep anyone that looks threatening but also I don't think any wingers are putting their hands up.
In saying that I think Tafoua will play many origin games, just question of when.

[benrama]

Dugan you have to find a place for, I agree he's probably a complete douchebag but you pick on talent not personality.

I still like the idea of bringing him off the bench as an impact player, I think Hayne has to start at fullback.

At least with Dugan on the bench you have a few interesting adjustments you can make in game, including the option to bench one of your starting back row.

Here's a pertinent article from 2011: http://m.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/nr...-1226051698116

[dRavidC]

Origin Game III tomorrow night boys!

Line is 4.5 total at 34

ATS Spread locked at 1-1.

Total is 2-0 to the UNDER.

Haven't done my proper analysis yet but I think the fact that this is in NSW means we'll get a close game, but i'm finding it hard to go against qld, unless we get a replica of game I where half of the QLD team were asleep.

[Tim Gerry Mander]

Apparently this is the second biggest start the blues have gotten when playing at ANZ stadium.

Failure is not an option - we can't give those canetoads more ammunition.

The rot stops tomorrow.

[Dr.Gonzo]

NSW +4.5 (2 units)
NSW ML (1 units)
Robbie Farrah MOM (0.5 units)

Goodluck to anyone having a bet tonight.

[secret007]

whats the line in game 1? i dont really follow rugby league but want to have some action on the game.

[Tim Gerry Mander]

Right on cue, Mitchell Pearce special.

What a donk!

[Dr.Gonzo]

Weak defense but soft penalty from the officials and Farah was not allowed his best opportunity to tackle Thurston.

Rub of the green with QLD

[Dr.Gonzo]

NSW not taking their chances

[Dr.Gonzo]

About time

[Dr.Gonzo]

NSW well on top with the flow of the game yet still trail on the scoreboard, hopefully QLD are tired in the 2nd half given the work load.

Refs applying a clear home ground advantage after the first 15 minutes.

NSW really should be winning this, poor execution.

[rohan22no]

Omg on tilt, nsw should have 20 pts with the chances they have had. I know as soon as qld get a sniff in the 2nd half they score