Fans all left saying the same about State of Origin opener
The State of Origin series opener is in the books, but those watching on were all left with the same lingering thought after the game.
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The State of Origin opener is in the books with the NSW Blues recording the 18-6 victory at Suncorp Stadium.
The Wednesday night encounter remained in the balance in the dying stages before a Dylan Edwards try ended the contest in the 72nd minute.
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Despite the close looking nature of the scoreboard, fans watching were left wanting more from the spectacle they’d just witnessed.
It was a dour affair with plenty of errors in the second half, while Queensland’s weapons Cameron Munster, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Kalyn Ponga had next to zero impact. There were 15 penalties in total across the game.
NRL supremo Phil Gould said that while the Blues took the chocolates, it was hardly a convincing outing from Laurie Daley’s squad.
“I thought NSW for as well as they played they also played very conservatively. They were just happy to come here and grind out the win and get the job done,” Gould said on Nine.
Andrew Johns and Cameron Smith echoed Gould’s remarks when discussing the opener during the post-game.
“It wasn’t a genuine Origin game,” Johns said.
Smith added: “It didn’t feel like one.”
Johns said: “It didn’t feel that way for whatever reason. It just didn’t feel like the intensity and the physical side of an Origin game.
“For me it was like a good club game.”
Fans watching on however didn’t hold back in their criticism of the contest with many quickly labelling it one of the worst Origin contests of all time.
One wrote on social media: “Honestly not really a great game. So many errors. QLD were their own worst enemy.”
A second said: “Top 5 worst origin games ever this one.”
A third said: “Honestly one of the worst games of Origin I’ve seen. NSW kept QLD in the game up until the 70th with dumb decisions.”
Another said: “Forward pass to ice it is fitting for possibly the worst Origin game of all time.”
A fifth added: “Officially the worst State of Origin to watch. What a sh*t game.”
Origin lead up falls flat
It wasn’t just about the game either as the Origin series kicked off with more of a whimper than a bang.
With the only drama being whether Payne Haas would be taken out by a quad injury from last week or a bad cork would stop Stephen Crichton from playing an Origin match, it was a lead up devoid of any big stories.
Even north of the border, despite Robert Toia being plucked from obscurity to become one of three debutants and Daly Cherry-Evans becoming the oldest player in Origin history, there was little to get excited for either side of the border.
Arguably the most interesting part of the lead up was the media bans imposed on Latrell Mitchell and Spencer Leniu.
For those who only tune in for Origin, Leniu had two tense altercations with Queensland legend Johnathan Thurston following the Roosters’ game against the Broncos in early April.
Leniu reportedly called Thurston a “f***wit” after coming from the field in the 55th minute of play, before another run in at full-time.
Mitchell, who is often dragged into the spotlight, wants to let his footy do the talking and has a self-imposed media ban.
But when stars ‘not talking’ is the story of the lead up, therein lies the problem.
Despite the low-key build up, 52,483 turned up, just shy of the all-time Origin record at Suncorp Stadium of 52,540 from Game 3 in 2017.
Gus kicks QLD while they’re down
With the Maroons left licking their wounds, Gould sunk the boots in even further by painting a bleak picture for the squad north of the border.
“What they’ve achieved is shattering Queensland. I think Queensland are really going to have some nightmares over that game,” Gould said.
“I just don’t see any answers for them. I don’t see any answers in the selection room.
“The individual players on the team are going to have to play better, but in all the important parts of the game, they’re just outpointed tonight.
“You know? I don’t know that they’ve got it in them to come back from that.”
The Maroons will look to exact their revenge when the second State of Origin game gets underway on June 18.
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