It’s the game we’ve all been waiting for and the State of Origin series opener is finally here.
The NSW halves partnership of Mitchell Moses and Nathan Cleary has been consistently under the microscope in the lead-up to the Suncorp Stadium clash.
Meanwhile, the inclusion of a 10-game rookie and Billy Slater’s desperate desire to seek revenge could be a major boost in Queensland’s bid to win back the shield.
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Here, foxsports.com.au breaks down the biggest burning questions ahead of the series opener!
WILL CLEARY AND MOSES WORK AS A HALVES PAIRING?
Nathan Cleary and Mitchell Moses’ compatibility is the biggest question lingering over the NSW side ahead of the series opener, given both are dominant halfbacks at club level.
“I think historically there’s always been a seven who’s the dominant one, the game manager, the shot caller and the six is the one that complements them,” champion Queensland playmaker Cooper Cronk told foxsports.com.au.
“That’s historically but I think today the game’s moved past that, it’s more about how do you complement each other.
“So sometimes the best halves combination is one that creates space for the other one when they’re on fire; when the other one’s a bit quiet, the other one steps up.
“When one’s on fire the other one sort of takes a secondary role and it doesn’t matter if you’re wearing six or seven, it’s the best halves pairing as opposed to the main player with the support act.
“It’s more about the collective helping each other create space, moving in rhythm. Common players with the same strengths can work if they complement each other, it’s not a cookie-cutter situation.
“When you’re on, you want the footy, I’ll get the ball to you. Let’s move and play both sides of the ruck together, it doesn’t matter who’s first receiver or second receiver, it just works as long as it’s a selfless approach for those two.”
Cronk himself knows what it takes to be a selfless player for the betterment of his state, partnering Johnathan Thurston for Queensland across several series.
While he wore the No.7, Cronk often took a back seat to Thurston as the dominant playmaker.
“I think ultimately the thing is what’s more important? Is it more important for you to be the best player or for the state to win the game?” Cronk said.
“Everyone will get their opportunities in Origin… but I think you’d rather take a selfless halves pairing willing to do whatever it takes for their other half to be the best player they can be.
“(My time with Thurston) was a complementing role. If ‘Johnno’ called for the ball and saw something, it was my job to get him the ball in the best possible situation.
“When I felt I had a combination with Billy (Slater) on a certain edge and a certain player, then we leant that way.”
Iongi efforts impress Matty | 01:06
HOW COULD NSW EXPOSE QLD SPINE?
Queensland fullback Kalyn Ponga hasn’t been setting the world alight for the Knights in clubland.
However, there’s no question the superstar lifts when he pulls on the Maroons jersey, as evidenced by his debut, and a man of the match display in the 2022 decider.
The 27-year-old will also benefit from Queensland’s star-studded spine of Cameron Munster, Harry Grant and Daly Cherry-Evans.
There’s not many better trios to create space for Ponga to flourish — but NSW will have other ideas and their halves’ kicking game could stop him in his tracks.
Cleary and Moses possess two of the best kicking games in the NRL, and Ponga faces a tough task to get Queensland out of trouble from the back field.
“Mitchell Moses has the best long kicking game in the competition, so I suggest he might kick the ball more in yardage,” Cronk said.
“As it gets closer to the tryline, Nathan Cleary will come into play and that’s exactly what a halves pairing should do.
“Now that doesn’t mean that Nathan doesn’t kick the ball long; if Kalyn Ponga starts leaning towards Moses’ side because he has kicked the last three, then Nathan will take the next one and probably kick a 40/20 because Kalyn is cheating the game a little bit there.”
Ponga also had an injury scare in Queensland camp, however he has since been declared fit after he pointed to his quad during a training session.
“Kalyn will be right to go. He missed the first couple of training sessions, but he will be ready to go next Wednesday night,” Maroons utility Tom Dearden told reporters.
“It’s just the type of player he is, he won’t miss a beat. He has been in this team a few times, so he knows what to do when he is out there.”
Cherry-Evans, meanwhile, has also struggled for form in clubland, with unrest surrounding his NRL future after his announced exit from Manly.
Yet Kangaroos and former Maroons coach Mal Meninga has no concerns over the 36-year-old playmaker delivering for his state.
“He’s our leader, and that’s what leaders do – they’ve got to lead from the front,” Meninga told Newswire.
“‘Chez’ won’t be worried by what’s going on because he’s got so much experience. All this chatter off the field isn’t going to worry him or the team.
“They might have had a quick chat about it at the start of camp, but I reckon they’ve moved on past all that.
“Whatever Daly does for next year isn’t going to have an impact on his or Queensland’s performance.”
Munster cross leaves panel in stitches! | 06:37
WILL TOIA HANDLE THE ORIGIN ARENA?
If Roosters coach Trent Robinson believes you’re ready, then you’re ready.
That’s the belief of Queensland coach Billy Slater, who revealed he spoke to Robinson before making the call to draft in a 10-game NRL player for his Origin debut.
“I think he’s a world-class centre, I think he is a top-line centre. Although he is only 10 games into his NRL career, he has been through a bit of adversity,” Slater said when announcing his team.
“I know his coach has a really high opinion of him and watching the principles he has in his game, we think he is of Origin class.”
For Cronk also, a reference from someone like Robinson is a huge tick.
“Yeah it does, it probably played a part,” he said.
“So Billy can sit there in his cave at home and watch as much football as he wants and needs to and has a good understanding of what it takes to represent Queensland and play well. But then getting it from multiple sources who have daily connections and interactions with his players obviously helps as well.”
The 20-year-old has long been touted as a star of the future, but injuries hampered him during his time in the Roosters pathways system, suffering two ACL ruptures.
Toia only made his first grade debut in Round 1, equalling Payne Haas’ record for the least games (in the NRL era) before playing Origin.
So will his tender age of just 20 mean representing his state is a stretch too far?
“Are you too young to play NRL? Are you too young to play Origin? He has shown enough to Billy Slater and the majority of people who watch the game closely,” Cronk said.
“There are glimpses of brilliance in his game, both sides of the football. So you’re never too young, you’re never too experienced as long as your performances stack up.
“The thing about Rob is I really like his path to get where he has, it hasn’t been easy. It’s not as if everything’s been delivered to him on a silver platter.
“He’s had multiple long-term injuries, he’s had to show resilience. He’s had to work hard through that and they’re the type of characteristics you want in an Origin player.”
The young gun faces a tough task in shutting down a true strike centre pairing for NSW in Stephen Crichton and Latrell Mitchell.
Crichton is in some doubt due to a quad complaint, however the match-up between Toia and potentially Mitchell could prove decisive.
“Latrell will rise to the occasion, Rob Toia needs to rise to the occasion. If I’m looking at the game, if Latrell Mitchell and Stephen Crichton get 20 touches and Toia and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow stop them each time, Queensland have a good chance of winning,” Cronk said.
“But if Crichton and Latrell get that ball on the front foot with space to move and cause chaos, then it’s NSW’s game to win.”
Haas given all clear by teammates | 02:28
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WHAT HAS THE BLUES’ NOT-SO-SECRET WEAPON ADDED?
NSW coach Laurie Daley has a trump card up his sleeve as he edges closer to the first game of his second Blues tenure: Craig Bellamy.
The Storm mentor is widely recognised as one of rugby league’s sharpest minds and having Bellamy in the Blues’ corner has been invaluable, according to back rower Angus Crichton.
“He’s been at camp pretty much the whole time … he has just sort of been watching everything,” Crichton said on NRL360.
“I guess he has been helping Loz and chiming in where he needs to and behind closed doors.
“For myself personally, I have sort of admired the way he has gone about his business from afar for over 10 years now and to sort of get to know him on a personal level, asking questions and just seeing his footy IQ has been very cool.
“He’s an incredible coach so it’s great to have him in camp.”
Daley also told NRL360 that Bellamy is simply there to bounce ideas off.
“We’re so happy to have Craig on board. He’s had a major influence on the way the coaching staff have operated already. He’s overseeing what we are doing as coaches,” Daley said.
“As I’ve said before, Craig isn’t having any input on the way we play. He’s taking our ideas from a coaching point of view and then tossing in his own ideas.
“Running stuff by him has been so good for us coaches. I’m not in the NRL system, I have my own ideas, we have young assistant coaches with massive futures so to have someone like Craig to bounce these ideas off is unreal.”
Daley will almost undoubtedly be tapping into Bellamy’s value when it comes to his intimate knowledge of several of Queensland’s key players.
Not only does he understand Slater’s mentality after the duo spent years together in Melbourne, he current coaches Xavier Coates, Cameron Munster, Harry Grant and Trent Loiero.
“For me, he probably doesn’t even know to be honest,” Munster told Channel 9. “I think Craig always comes to me before the game in the sheds and says, ‘Just back yourself, whatever you see mate, go and do it’.
“He gives me that licence. I’m not too sure he’ll be giving the opposition any ammo or any information, but hopefully he doesn’t give away my dark secrets.”
‘He mislead them!’ Gus slammed for lies | 02:57
WHO HAS THE EDGE IN HEATED COACHING BATTLE?
Daley is desperate to return to the Origin arena with a bang after he endured a mostly turbulent first stint.
While he was able to mastermind a historic 2014 series win, breaking a long drought, he also lost in four other years and was ultimately sacked in 2017.
For former NSW player Matty Johns, Daley’s coaching career could mirror his experiences in the Origin arena; he endured a rough debut series that was largely down to Raiders teammate Mal Meninga, before going on to dominate for the Blues.
“A lot of the younger people who come to the game don’t remember Laurie as a player and what he did for NSW as a player,” Johns said on the Matty and Cronk podcast.
“I think when you’re talking about the greatest Queenslanders, you think Wally Lewis and Cameron Smith.
“When it comes to NSW you have ‘Joey’ (Andrew Johns), Bradley Clyde, Brett Kenny … I put Laurie just about at the top.
“Queensland dominated for so long throughout the 80s but the emergence of those young guys from the Green Machine really swung that.
“That first series in 1989, bad memories. He said, ‘It was terrible, I went in so naive not knowing what Origin was about… naively I went into that game believing Mal would take it easy on me’.
“He just completely humiliated Loz.”
So how did that change?
“The big rise with Laurie came when Phil Gould was coach. Gus recognised straight away that Laurie needed to be captain,” Johns said.
“When he made Laurie captain, they were playing a game at Lang Park, a big game … a tap on the dressing room, ‘Captains out, you’ve got to toss the coin’. Mal was the captain of Queensland.
“Gus grabbed him and said, ‘This is your time, go and hide in the toilet. Let Mal wait for you out there’.
“Laurie is hiding in the toilet as a power play, Mal is just standing there and made him wait five minutes before strolling out. It was a statement, Mal was filthy.
“That 1994 series, Laurie completely dominated.”
Meanwhile, Cronk was certain that Slater has been plotting his revenge since he lost last year’s series decider.
“One thing I will say, I was thinking about what happens in this game. NSW won that series with one play at the back-end of last year,” Cronk said.
“It would have sat with Billy, I know how Billy reacts to things. He would be sitting in his bunker analysing every Queensland player but also picking apart NSW.
“In big games Billy loved to come up with a play, a trick shot, something that threw the opposition out.
“I don’t know what it will be, but I am pretty sure he will come up with something that will try and ruffle the feathers of NSW.”
