State of Origin 2022: Maroons wary of Jarome Luai, the NRL’s most penalised player
The Maroons will be on high alert for the niggling tactics of the NRL’s most penalised player, Jarome Luai, in the Origin decider — and so should the referee.
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Memo Ashley Klein – watch this pest.
Blues five-eighth Jarome Luai is officially the NRL’s biggest bad boy and is ready to get under the skin of the Maroons in Wednesday night’s Origin series decider at Suncorp Stadium.
While he has been branded arrogant for the way he carries on in a winning team, Luai is also the NRL’s most penalised player in 2022.
Going into last weekend’s round of fixtures, of which he sat out due to Origin duties, Luai had conceded 16 penalties in 15 games for Penrith this year.
Luai was four penalties clear of Canterbury’s Corey Waddell (12 in 14 games) and the only player in the NRL’s worst infringers to be conceding more than one penalty per game.
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Melbourne’s Justin Olam is second on the list with 13 infringements in 16 games, still well below Luai’s strike rate of offending.
The Maroons will be on high alert for Luai’s illegal tactics in the decider and so should referee Klein, who has been criticised for his performances throughout the series.
“I didn’t know he is the most penalised player,” Queensland captain Daly Cherry-Evans said.
“Judging off the way the first two games were played, we have to make sure we are playing to the rules of the referee.
“The reality is everyone felt we got away with something in game one (Maroons won 16-10) and there is a view the Blues got away with something in game two (Blues won 44-12). We have to play our style of footy and if we do it will make it tough for them to keep up.
“I don’t find (Luai) to be a niggler out there. I don’t hear much of him vocally.
“He is a very energetic player, but we can control how much of a game he has. As a team you can dictate how well an individual plays if you work together.
“If we give them the ball deep in their end, I don’t think we see a whole lot of Luai, but in game two, we gave away cheap possession and that allowed Jarome and (Nathan) Cleary to come into the game.”
Luai made the Maroons pay in Perth when he danced past a lethargic Jeremiah Nanai to score a confidence-boosting try for the Blues.
The Blues No.6 will make his first appearance in an Origin decider and the Maroons don’t want to let him get his tail up.
“Luai is a gun,” Maroons forward Pat Carrigan said.
“I love the way he plays the game, he is passionate and a little bit lairy, but those sorts of guys will never let you down. He is their energy man and we need to shut him down.
“Cleary gets a lot of attention but he deserves a lot of the credit too for NSW’s success. Hopefully it’s not his night. He and Cleary will be a big focus for us.”
While Cleary blitzed the Maroons with a two-try masterclass in Perth, Luai has the ability to tear a game open with his speed and footwork.
“He’s been a quality player over the last couple of years and showed why he’s up there with the best halves in the comp,” Queensland forward Jai Arrow said.
“He scored a good try last game. We’ve got to focus on what we’re doing and make sure we’re defending well.
“Origin is based on effort areas and defending well. That will be our focus.”
Controversial ruling tearing apart fabric of Origin
-Robert Craddock, Travis Meyn, Peter Badel
Rugby league hard man Trevor Gillmeister fears the precious fabric of State of Origin football is in danger of being ripped apart by controversial World Cup eligibility laws.
NSW winger Brian To’o has declared his allegiance to Samoa for the World Cup in England later this year while a group of players including Queensland’s Josh Papalii and NSW trio Junior Paulo, Stephen Crichton and Jarome Luai will wait for Wednesday’s State of Origin decider before making call on whether they will commit to Australia or Samoa.
The expectation is that Crichton and Luai are leaning towards playing for Samoa.
“I just feel it should have been all sorted out before Origin started,’’ said Gillmeister.
“I don’t blame the players. You just have to make sure Origin stays special.
“I think if you are available for your state you should be available for Australia and if you don’t get picked for Australia then you should be available for other nations.
“It has got out of hand because no-one wants to hurt anyone’s feelings. Everyone is tiptoing around it. All my mates have been saying ‘what are they doing?’
“I went over to Perth for the second Origin game and there were mainly AFL people and they are so jealous of rugby league’s State of Origin. They just think it is the bees knees.
“I was there where Tom Gilbert was presented with his Origin jersey the other night with his mother.
“It was lucky he didn’t have to say anything because he was so emotional he could not have spoken. That is all he wanted to do. That is what Origin is about.
“I have no problems with people playing for their home country but you have to remember how Origin started. It’s about the underdog and the bloke who thought he was no chance of getting one.’’
Maroons prop Papalii said he was undecided about whether he would pledge his allegiance to the Kangaroos or Samoa for the World Cup – or whether he would play at all.
“I don’t know,” he said.
“I might not even go. A nice holiday would be nice.
“It’s great to see (To’o commit to Samoa).
“I’m in a different mindset. I’ve got the Maroon one for now. That’s where my focus is at.”
To’o would have been in a strong position to claim a wing spot for the World Cup while Luai’s path to the five-eighth spot would most likely have been blocked by Cameron Munster.
‘I’m not finished’: Papalii vows to inflict damage on Blues
Maroons enforcer Josh Papalii insists he isn’t a spent force in the Origin arena as the Queensland veteran vowed to inflict “damage” on the Blues in a fight for his representative future.
Papalii will make his 23rd appearance for Queensland in Wednesday night’s Origin series decider at a sold-out Suncorp Stadium.
The 30-year-old statesman has been below his best in the 2022 series, playing just 47 minutes across the opening two games as Queensland’s next generation of forwards emerged.
Papalii’s minimal impact has raised questions about how much longer he has left in rugby league’s toughest arena, with Queensland coach Billy Slater opting to give the likes of Origin rookies Pat Carrigan and Reuben Cotter more time on the field.
But the hard-hitting front rower declared he wasn’t done yet and would respond with a big game as Queensland looks to wrest back the Origin shield on home turf.
“I’ve been a bit quiet to be honest, I’m playing less time and not doing much in that time,” Papalii said.
“Hopefully I can bring out my best footy on Wednesday. I feel like I can do that.
“I need to be better with the time I have. It doesn’t help when we don’t have the ball, but without the ball, I’ve got to be doing more damage. That’s the plan for Wednesday.
“I really don’t listen to outside noise. I’ve had a good talk with Bill, he knows what I’m capable of doing and so do I.
“I just need to be better in game three. I know what I can bring and need to bring it.”
Papalii made his Origin debut in 2013 and played 10 of his first 11 games for Queensland off the bench as he bided his time behind front row greats Nate Myles and Matt Scott.
He has started at prop in his past 11 Origin appearances and Queensland great Billy Moore urging Papalii to go out with a bang.
“I believe ‘Papa’ has one more great game in him,” he said.
“Ricky Stuart (Canberra coach) has come out and gone into bat for Papa and that’s great. He has been a wonderful servant for Queensland and champions rise under pressure.
“This might be Papa’s moment, this is his hour to show what a great prop he is. If Papa leads, Tino (Fa’asuamaleaui) and Lindsay Collins will follow and go absolutely ape.
“We need Papa to produce his best and if he does, the Maroons will win this. That’s how important he is.
“He is not finished yet. There is one more big game from him in Maroon.”
With emerging middle forwards like Collins, Carrigan, Fa’asuamaleaui and Cotter (injured) starting to make their mark, Papalii’s time in the Origin furnace is coming to an end.
But that doesn’t mean he can’t make an impact in the decider, with Fa’asuamaleaui declaring Papalii was the beating heart of Queensland’s engine room.
“I don’t know why he’s come under pressure, he’s easily one of the best players in our team,” he said.
“He hasn’t been playing big minutes like he usually does but that’s the game plan we’ve got with young fellas that can play big minutes and help Papa out.
“He is the one that ties us all together. He is the father figure in the group.
“Without him we wouldn’t be in a decider. He is the one that leads everything.”
Papalii has made a combined 72m and 28 tackles in this series, raising speculation his spot in the team was under threat.
Slater has kept faith in the powerhouse prop and Maroons captain Daly Cherry-Evans – who made his Origin debut alongside Papalii in Game Two of the 2013 series – urged Papalii to back himself with the series on the line.
“I am backing Papa, I don’t want him to second guess himself,” he said.
“When this sort of chat comes up about your future, you can start to doubt yourself, but now is not the time to be second guessing where he stands in this side.
“Papa is here for a reason and we need him to lead from the front on Wednesday night.”
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