Maroons turn up the heat on Origin preparation in bid to save series in Sydney

THERE has been a great shift in Queensland’s Game Two camp, with players struck by the intensity of their preparations.

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THERE has been a great shift in Queensland’s Game Two camp, with players struck by the intensity of their preparations.

Coach Kevin Walters was accused of being “frustrated” at the Maroons’ team announcement on Monday.

He said he actually could just not wait to get into camp.

And for his playing group, it’s not frustration driving Walters and his side, but the realisation of how serious this situation is.

Cameron Munster says Queensland have turned up the heat as they look to save the series. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)

With the Origin series hanging in the balance ahead of their Game Two clash on Sunday at ANZ Stadium, the Queensland team have turned up the heat on their preparations.

Five-eighth Cameron Munster said the team’s first camp felt more relaxed, but the realisation they had to fight to save the series has hit them hard.

“It’s do or die for us now,” he said.

“Going in to camp one, we were a bit calmer ahead of the game. There wasn’t much expectation on ourselves.

“But there’s a little bit more riding on this now as we go into Sydney with our backs against the wall.”

The Maroons have had three training sessions since arriving in camp on Monday.

The first was a light run as they walked through all their plays and welcomed fullback Billy Slater back into the line-up.

A relaxed Kevin Walters ahead of the must-win clash Sydney clash. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)

On Wednesday and again on Thursday, they stepped things up with contested sessions against the Queensland Residents side.

The presence of Slater alone made it clear just how fired-up the Maroons were, with the star No. 1 bringing a new edge to the side.

His communication and control from the back is priceless to the Maroons and they have been talking about a number of Blues players as they go through the motions, including James Tedesco, Josh Addo-Carr, Tom Trbojevic.

They have come to the training paddock each day wearing their game faces and experienced forward Josh Papalii said he had also noticed that shift in mood around the Queensland team’s Gold Coast base.

With 10 Origin games under his belt, Papalii has been in enough camps to know what to expect but said the team were more serious than he can ever remember.

“It seems more intense than usual. The boys are a bit more focused than usual,” he said.

“It was pretty hard to cop after we lost the first one, especially the way we did lose it.

“But that’s the beauty of State of Origin, there’s always a second chance. Hopefully we grab on to it and take advantage of it.”

Queensland did the seemingly impossible last year when they went to Sydney and won Game Two, after losing the series opener on their home turf in Brisbane.

Josh Papalii is confident Queensland can make amends for their loss in Melbourne. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)

They managed to pull out a last-minute victory thanks to Johnathan Thurston and were also greatly inspired by their skipper Cameron Smith.

While Thurston and Smith are no longer there to produce such heroics, Munster is hopeful the change in attitude can again give the Maroons the second chance they so greatly desire.

Queensland will head into enemy territory today knowing just how much is on the line.

For the talented playmaker, the challenge that lies ahead is one he delights in.

“There’s nothing better than trying to do a job on NSW, in NSW,” he said.

“I know they’re going to come out and play well. We just need to be better.”

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