State of Origin 2017: Why Andrew Fifita holds key to NSW Blues’ State of Origin fortunes

WE all remember where Andrew Fifita was not so long ago. But when he gets the ball on Wednesday night, Queensland will swarm, revealing just how far the big prop has come, writes PAUL KENT.

THEY speak about Andrew Fifita in terms usually kept for playmakers. It comes in a rush of optimism and all in terms of affecting the result.

Here comes Fifita, the big man, and he has joined the narrative.

Wednesday night’s game has been about Cameron Smith seeking redemption, the return of Johnathan Thurston and Billy Slater and with it, we are led to believe, the return of Queensland.

Then there’s Cooper Cronk, of the old firm ... and Fifita leading the Blues to victory.

All Queensland and all their great players influencing the result.

Except for Fifita.

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Andrew Fifita will be Queensland’s No.1 target. Picture: Getty Images

When he gets the ball the Maroons will swarm.

The faith in Fifita is a testimony to his rare impact as a prop and to his growing maturity off the field.

Yet it remains a bold step of faith for Blues fans. We all know where Fifita was not so long ago.

His life was the repetitive steps of small violence off the field and troubling inconsistency on it.

He was banned for threatening a young referee at a junior footy game. He supported one-punch killer Kieran Loveridge, even as the tragedy of that doubled with the suicide of victim Thomas Kelly’s younger brother Stuart last July.

Around that were the small incidents that warranted a conversation around the game, if not the wider press.

He seemed burdened by always wanting to prove himself the tough guy. It was enough for those a little older and a little more weathered by life to recognise a man fighting for identity.

Bravado was there in place of true confidence.

Same on the field, where Fifita would do wonderful things but then bring it all undone with moments of poor discipline that would welcome his opponent’s back into the game.

Yet somewhere, something happened.

Fifita enrolled himself in a diploma course to work in juvenile justice. Perhaps the greatest sign of his growing maturity are the tattoos being removed from his neck, an awareness that it’s what is inside that counts.

Andrew Fifita scores during game one of the State of Origin series in Brisbane. Picture: Getty Images

Fifita is somewhere along that road to forgiveness. In his case, it’s a long one but the point is he is on it.

Props have long been regarded as the standards to success. Yet for generations their work went largely unnoticed by those in the cheap seats, with only the truly insightful able to appreciate their dirty work.

Then along came statistics departments who found a way to make all that unnoticed work suddenly get noticed. Runs and post contact metres and all that.

Tyson Frizell and Andrew Fifita jokingly try to kick a ball during their captain’s run. Picture: AAP

Fifita is not only that kind of player, though, and that is not why they talk about him like they are now. His statistics are still good, but he brings something more. He brings what the playmakers bring, that ability to change the game.

In the right frame of mind he dictates everything around him. Queensland were unable to handle him in Origin I.

He needed just the slightest whiff of momentum and he was gone, a puzzle the Maroons could not solve.

He weighs 126kg but moves lightly. His speed is deceptive and when they were finally able to get men on him he came up with an offload that left many with a teary eye as thoughts of Arthur Beetson flickered around.

Smith missed enough tackles to make up his season’s tally whenever Fifita was in the general vicinity. Yet there is still a query.

The Maroons have specifically targeted Fifita during their training sessions, dressing various players in a white singlet during opposed sessions to identify as Fifita so they can work him specifically.

Andrew Fifita is tackled during game one at Suncorp Stadium. Picture: Getty Images

Most importantly, they will also test the vulnerabilities previously seen and exploited in Fifita, and the success of the Blues might well come down to how far along that path to redemption Fifita has travelled.

Fifita is working his way back to public forgiveness.

If he remains genuine and consistent it will eventually happen. Origin II is a big step along that path.