CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT
Sunday night’s Origin Game II is make or break for an embattled Queensland side, after a 50-6 hiding in the Townsville series-opener.
With generational talent rising in the NSW Blues, and last night minute additions to the Maroons squad – a loss in Brisbane this week could spell the end of the two decades of Northern dominance.
Or it could just be another case of the cocky Southerners getting ahead of themselves, before they get absolutely demolished by the underdogs.
Like what happened last year.
And like what has happened in 85% of every match played since 2001.
However, it’s hard to know if the Game I battering in FNQ was part of the plan – as Queensland coach Paul Green announces his team changes
Veteran hooker Andrew McCullough has copped a glorious recall to the Origin arena, set to replace the injured rake Harry Grant.
However, it’s the baby Maroons that all eyes are on. Cowboys Frank Molo and Warriors rookie Reece Walsh will also make their Origin debuts in game two.
From this flustered pre-match restructuring, the only thing that needs to happen for Queensland to get that lift they need is for one of those biased NSW dribblers from Fox Sports to describe them as the worst Origin side in the history of the game.
Like they did last year, and like they did in 2015 with their Dad’s Army rhetoric.
Reporters say the Maroons camp feels like an ‘eye of the storm’ right now, as the boys constantly scroll social media to see if James Hooper or Paul Kent, or even Buzz Rothfield has descended into the clickbait shock jock shit that turns Queensland players into deranged winning machines.
Paul Green says he is not yet ruling out the ‘Matador Factor’ – a term used to describe the effects that cocky Fox Sports pundits can have Queensland’s State Of Origin side – where they effectively ‘wave a red rag at the bull’ by describing them as the worst team in history.
“We might be looking at a series sweep unless we get a couple articles like that in the next couple days” says Mal Meninga, one of the few unbiased Fox Sports commentators and former QLD coach.
“I don’t doubt Kenty and Hoops are bashing a keyboard right now, though”
“Playing right into our hands”
