Maroons analysis: Tactical blueprint behind Selwyn Cobbo’s bench selection

Billy Slater’s decision to select backline star Selwyn Cobbo on the bench has drawn criticism south of the border. The methodology behind the perceived gamble can now be revealed.

This is Queensland’s tactical blueprint for Selwyn Cobbo to shock the Blues.

The Maroons plan to unleash 105kg strike weapon Cobbo on tired NSW forwards as Queensland hierarchy prepare to back their controversial bench selection to outfox NSW in Origin I on Wednesday night.

Queensland coach Billy Slater has come under fire for picking Cobbo on the bench with one of the state’s most one-eyed supporters, the legendary Paul Vautin, claiming the Maroons are one forward short.

But this masthead can reveal the Maroons’ methodology behind Slater’s seemingly boom-or-bust decision to name Broncos utility back Cobbo on interchange.

Queensland’s selection panel considered two key factors. Not only have the Maroons lost an outside back to injury in four of the last six Origin matches, but the NRL’s shocking injury toll this season has had repercussions for Queensland’s backline health.

Four starting members of the Maroons’ back five - Reece Walsh, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Murray Taulagi and Xavier Coates - have missed a total of 13 premiership matches entering the Origin opener at Sydney’s Accor Stadium.

Billy Slater knows Selwyn Cobbo’s strengths inside and out. Picture: Liam Kidston

Taulagi and the ‘Hammer’ missed an entire month due to injury. Coates (hamstring) didn’t play in rounds 9 and 10. Walsh suffered a facial fracture in round 3, missed Brisbane’s Magic Round clash in round 11 with knee soreness and will have his left knee strapped in Origin I.

Cobbo was outstanding filling in for Walsh in Brisbane’s Magic Round win over Manly and if Queensland’s backs feel the pinch in Origin I, Slater has the perfect insurance policy in the Cherbourg Flash.

Maroons selector Darren Lockyer believes NSW’s 2023 campaign imploded last year when Tom Trbojevic came off injured in Origin II, forcing hooker Damien Cook to the centres.

With Cook all at sea out wide, the Maroons ran riot to belt the Blues 32-6 and seal the series in straight sets.

The ability to defend on the edge could make or break this year’s Origin series. The versatile Cobbo is Queensland’s wildcard.

“There’s two parts to it, but there’s a lot of people excited to have Selwyn in the team,” said Lockyer, Channel 9’s expert analyst and former Maroons skipper.

“We saw it with Damien Cook last year where he had to defend in the centres.

“If you don’t have a player on the bench or in your starting team who can move to the centres and cover that position really well, then you can be exposed.

“There’s the option of (Jeremiah) Nanai or (Jaydn) Su’A playing in the centres, but that’s a fair increase in responsibility for those sorts of (back-rowers).

“So having Selwyn there to cover that, but equally bringing someone like Cobbo into the game when fatigue sets in ... he has played some great football this year, he has made it look easy at times.”

Slater insists he is comfortable with his “calculated” selection of Cobbo.

“We have a plan around injecting Selwyn into the game,” he said. “We are across that, the whole team.

“There’s risks everywhere, this is footy, but they are calculated decisions.

“There doesn’t have to be an injury for Selwyn to be on the field.

Selwyn Cobbo will be used for injury cover. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

“He is a big body and a wonderful player, so he may pop up anywhere.”

The million-dollar question is what happens if there is no Queensland injury crisis? Does Cobbo catch a cold getting splinters on the bench?

It’s almost exactly 27 years to the day that NSW hooker Aaron Raper sat on the Blues bench for the entire 80 minutes in Game Two of 1997, but Slater is determined to get Cobbo into the action.

If the Broncos ace doesn’t answer an SOS in the backline, he has the size and power to slot into back row or lock.

The pace of the modern game is busting the lungs of the code’s biggest men in midfield. The latter stages of each half, when fatigue is amplified, is the ideal platform for a fresher Cobbo to run amok.

“Billy will time it (Cobbo’s use) absolutely perfectly I’m sure,” Maroons legend Wally Lewis said.

“He will be looking at the NSW defence and seeing if they are showing signs of being extremely tired.

“Cobbo being injected into the game at that stage could be a wonderful factor for Queensland.

“In the face of disaster in Origin, you don’t always have time to plan, but Selwyn has the size and power to make an impact.

“He will take on the field with him a determination to prove to some that I should have been there from the start.”

Queensland skipper Daly Cherry-Evans made his debut for the Maroons as a super sub in 2013.

Traditionally a halfback, he defended in the back row, amassing 26 tackles in 23 minutes, evidence that Cobbo’s presence on the bench can be a masterstroke.

“With the super-sub role, there are two things that are really important,” Cherry-Evans said.

“You have to put the team first and then bring your strengths to the team.

“If Selwyn does that he is going to be fine. I’d like to think we have made him really comfortable in the role he is going to play this week.

“He is a talent. We’ve seen any time he’s played for Queensland he’s done a fantastic job.

“I am really confident. We love having Selwyn in camp. He has a good energy about him. He doesn’t say much but when he does it is something to listen to.

“We love playing with Selwyn Cobbo.”

Originally published as Maroons analysis: Tactical blueprint behind Selwyn Cobbo’s bench selection