Josh McGuire says the Maroons aren’t worried about being out-muscled by the Blues big-boppers in Game II
JOSH McGuire isn’t worried about the physical contest, but he admits the Blues were too good for his Maroons in another vital area.
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FORGET about aggression and physicality, Maroons hard man Josh McGuire says Queensland must win the battle between the ears to be any chance of levelling the series on Sunday.
McGuire was one of Queensland’s best in a series-opening loss despite it being his first game in six weeks after an ankle injury.
But he never doubted his ability to slot straight in, given the lessons learned in eight previous State of Origin appearances.
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“Origin is more about your head, mentally than physically, taking your body to places it hasn’t been to before,” he told AAP.
“It’s a different sport completely (to the NRL) and I wasn’t going to put myself in a situation like that if I didn’t think I could do it.”
McGuire looks likely to have the services of prop Dylan Napa in Sydney after the Sydney Roosters talent, named in the side on Wednesday night, got through Thursday’s training uninhibited.
ORIGIN PODCAST: Updates & inside both camps before Game 2 - The Splash
It means Queensland will field an unchanged forward pack despite critics pointing to their deficiencies as the reason for the 22-12 loss in Melbourne.
McGuire argued they had the right men for the job though and only small tweaks were needed.
“As soon as people start thinking stats are the be-all and end-all you lose sight of what rugby league’s about,” McGuire said.
“At times we were more dominant, more aggressive but they won and we’ve got to get better.
“But no (not more aggressive), we just need to be smarter in areas... Origin is about ball control, completing and winning tackles and if you’re low in those areas it’s hard to win.”
Originally published as Josh McGuire says the Maroons aren’t worried about being out-muscled by the Blues big-boppers in Game II
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