Weekend Read: Roadie v rock star as Dylan Edwards and Reece Walsh headline State of Origin I

Dylan Edwards has three grand final rings. Reece Walsh sports a diamond earring. The Origin fullbacks couldn’t be more different, but they’re just as dangerous, BRENT READ writes.

Dylan Edwards and Reece Walsh.

Dylan Edwards has three grand final rings. Reece Walsh has been known to sport a diamond earring. Edwards has a Clive Churchill medal. Walsh has a GQ gong.

Edwards has a tick over 40,000 followers on Instagram. Walsh has surged past 400,000 and is rapidly closing in on half-a-million.

Edwards’ social media accounts are littered with pictures of his wife, children and his dog. Walsh looks every inch the doting dad as well — his daughter Leila is the apple of his eye — although he also manages to highlight his partnerships with Nike and Ralph Lauren.

Reece Walsh is a genuine star of the NRL. Picture: Adam Head

If Walsh is a rugby league rock star, Edwards is its best roadie. On Wednesday night, they renew a rivalry that could culminate in one of the pair pulling on the Australian No.1 jersey at the end of the year when Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga sits down to select his side for the international season.

Edwards has already taken James Tedesco’s NSW fullback spot and, although Meninga insists he will make a decision based on form and loyalty at the end of the year, the Origin series will no doubt play a significant part in dictating where the jersey lands.

Which means the outcome over the next month or so could be crucial for Walsh and Edwards as they chase the game’s ultimate honour. Truth be told, Meninga can’t go wrong. In an era where the game is flushed with fullbacks, Walsh and Edwards are two of the game’s absolute elite.

Walsh has already had his taste of Origin and walked away with a series win, which stamped him as a player who was born for moments like this.

Edwards has had to bide his time, patiently playing a waiting game while Tedesco led the Blues. His day has now arrived and the concern for Queensland is that he has a penchant for performing when the pressure is at its greatest.

Dylan Edwards has had to bide his time for this State of Origin shot. Picture: Getty Images

The last time they met at Accor Stadium, Edwards walked away with the chocolates. That was in last year’s grand final when Walsh’s Brisbane Broncos had the game at their mercy, only to throw it away in the final 20 minutes as Nathan Cleary took over.

Edwards had a field day that night as well. There was a touch of Forrest Gump about his game — he ran for 275 metres and could have kept going.

Edwards just keeps on running, going as hard in the last minute as he does in the first. He was built for Origin, where players make their name by finding one last effort when others have called it a night.

Walsh had his moments as well, although he and his teammates were overshadowed as the Panthers made it three premierships on the trot. It was a traumatic night for anyone in a Broncos jersey but Walsh won’t need to exorcise any demons because he is not that type of guy.

He doesn’t carry his divots. He is an old-fashioned gun slinger, backing his ability and his instincts. Yes, there are the occasional errors, something the NSW Blues have no doubt noted this week.

Fox Sports Lab suggests Walsh has made 22 errors this year. Edwards has made only seven. More often than not, Walsh gets it right and NSW coach Michael Maguire will be well aware of that as well.

Walsh and daughter Leila after the grand final loss. Picture: Adam Head

Dylan Edwards and his Clive Churchill Medal in 2022. Picture: NRL Photos / Brett Costello

What the stats don’t show is his innate ability to put the fear of God into the opposition. When he touches the ball, anything can happen. On occasions, the circus that follows him overshadows the substance.

Earlier this year, this columnist was driving home from Penrith and listening to the broadcast of the Broncos game against Parramatta. Walsh starred and afterwards, Ezra Mam was interviewed. The background to that interview was shrieking teenagers, whose only wish was to get a selfie or autograph from Walsh.

His good looks make him a fan favourite, but so does his style. He plays with swagger. Edwards is more predictable but no easier to handle. You generally know what is coming with the Panthers star. He lurks around the middle of the field, often takes a hit-up and always looms in support.

Knowing it is one thing, stopping it, another. They are contrasts in many ways but driven by the same desire to be the best at their craft.

As for which is the better fullback, it probably depends on your predilection. Some of us like the bloke who goes for the big plays. Others prefer the conservative type. Some like the glitz and glamour. Others prefer the grafter.

Ultimately, you can’t go wrong with Edwards and Walsh. You may as well split hairs — it might be easier.

MITCHELL MOSES READY TO RESCUE BLUES

The heat is rising on Jarome Luai and Nicho Hynes as they prepare to lead NSW into the opening game of the State of Origin series next week.

The Blues’ spare-part halves need to fire or they could quickly be shuffled out the door. Mitchell Moses made sure of that with his return for Parramatta on Thursday night.

Moses, out for much of the season with a broken foot, looked like a man on a mission as he tore into Cronulla and inspired the Eels to victory.

It was a week too late for NSW coach Michael Maguire but Moses showed that if the Blues strike trouble in Origin I, he is ready to come to their rescue with the series potentially on the line.

The Eels playmaker finished with a couple of try assists as Parramatta chalked up their fourth win of the year. Suddenly, they looked like a football side again. They had their talisman back and he did what he is paid to do — take control.

Maguire would no doubt watch on with a wistful sense of what could have been. The whisper out of the Blues was that Moses had been earmarked to partner Nathan Cleary in the halves at the start of the year.

Mitchell Moses looked like a man on a mission against Cronulla. Picture: Getty Images

Cleary was ruled out weeks ago. Moses kept NSW guessing until the 11th hour. As it was, he was held back by the Eels, leaving Maguire with little choice but to overlook him when he named his inaugural Blues squad.

Instead, the keys to NSW will be handed to Hynes and Luai. Not a bad consolation mind you, but they head to Accor Stadium with the crosshairs on their performance as NSW attempt to regain the Origin shield.

Hynes has been plagued by a calf problem in the lead to the game. The last time Luai pulled on a sky blue jersey, he finished the night by posting a social media missive that ignited furore.

He has the opportunity to win back the state on Wednesday night. He needs to aim up or it might be the last chance he gets.

Originally published as Weekend Read: Roadie v rock star as Dylan Edwards and Reece Walsh headline State of Origin I