Dilemma for Kevin Walters as he tries to rebuild Maroons
QUEENSLAND was not far off the pace but Kevin Walters will have to find improvement from the 17 players who lost Game One because there are few options waiting in the wings.
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QUEENSLAND coach Kevin Walters is facing Groundhog Day — only this time the well is dry.
The Maroons were humbled 22-12 in the State of Origin series opener at the MCG after the Baby Blues blew Queensland away with a scintillating performance.
Blues coach Brad Fittler gambled on 11 Origin debutants and they repaid his faith, exposing Queensland’s suspect forwards as the Maroons missed a staggering 42 tackles.
Queensland had excuses. Origin legends Billy Slater, Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk and Johnathan Thurston were missing and the Maroons had far from an ideal preparation.
There were synergies with last year’s epic series. The Maroons were blown away in Game One, prompting Walters to make seven changes as they came back to win a third straight series.
Queensland was not far off the pace but Walters will have to find improvement from the 17 he fielded because there are few options waiting in the wings.
The likes of Joe Ofahengaue, Corey Oates, Matt Scott, Kalyn Ponga, Matt Gillett and Slater could be injected for Game Two at ANZ Stadium on June 24 when Queensland attempt to save the series.
However Walters does not have a smorgasbord of talent to lean on like when he overhauled the Maroons last year.
The most worrying aspect of Wednesday night’s loss for Walters was that Queensland could not find the killer blow when needed, a staple of the Maroons 11 series wins in the past 12 years.
After hitting the lead early in the second half it appeared as though Queensland would cruise to victory and set up a tilt at a fourth straight series win.
But the Maroons could not capitalise when they would normally put NSW to sleep.
The absence of the “Big Four” was telling but it was the lack of impact from Queensland’s forwards which prevented halves Ben Hunt and Cameron Munster from having any momentum to play off.
Jarrod Wallace — three runs for 26m. Gavin Cooper — seven runs for 56m. Coen Hess — seven runs for 51m.
The Maroons set the tone with some bruising defence but didn’t have the attack to win the game.
When the Blues got a sniff they put Queensland away. NSW did not bomb a try-scoring opportunity. It was a very Queensland way for the Blues to be playing.
Sitting in the commentary box after ending his 42-game Origin career, former skipper Smith was confident the Maroons could bounce back and rescue the series in Sydney.
“There is plenty to learn from, I don’t think there was much in the game,” he said.
“They need to be a little bit more expansive in Game Two. If they want to threaten the Blues they need to be more willing with the ball.
“We ran hard. We played hard for the whole 80 minutes and were making good metres but we need to create opportunities.”
In his third series as coach, Walters is facing another daunting challenge to save the series and he is unlikely to make wholesale changes because he simply doesn’t have many options.
The problem for the Maroons is Fittler’s Baby Blues will head to Sydney with the confidence they can crush Queensland’s Origin dominance.
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