State of Origin 2023: How Maroon manhandling of Matt Burton lead to Brad Fittler’s overhaul
NSW’s selection of hot heads Tevita Pangai Junior and Hudson Young raised plenty of eyebrows – but this is the incident that prompted such a savage response.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
NSW coach Brad Fittler knows this could be the last throw of the dice. So if this is to be Fittler’s final State of Origin stand, he plans to go down swinging.
Tevita Pangai Junior has been a powder keg for much of his career, the ultimate risk-reward player. He could win the opening State of Origin game for NSW. Then again, he could just as easily lose it.
His temperament has been his undoing on more than one occasion but when he is on, as he was in the second half against the Gold Coast last weekend, he is more than a handful.
Hudson Young doesn’t mind pushing the envelope either. The Canberra forward was sin-binned at the weekend but the upside outweighs the down as far as Fittler is concerned.
There is a method to Fittler’s madness. One of the enduring images of Queensland’s win in the final game of last year’s series was Maroons enforcer Tino Fa’asuamaleaui grabbing Matt Burton in a headlock after he had been belted by Dane Gagai.
The Blues were seething with the actions of Fa’asuamaleaui and Gagai. There were some who were equally disappointed in the reaction – or lack there of – from the players in sky blue jerseys.
They took an eternity to come to Burton’s rescue. By the time they arrived, he was swamped in Maroon. In the days after that incident, it was Pangai Jnr who warned Fa’asuamaleaui that there would be repercussions if he tried the same thing when the Bulldogs played the Titans.
That no doubt resonated with the Blues hierarchy. Then, on Sunday just gone, having been given a halftime spray by Canterbury coach Cameron Ciraldo, Pangai made it his personal mission to take on Fa’asuamaleaui.
Make no mistake. Fittler and advisor Greg Alexander were taking notice. They have been for some time, Fittler in particular taking a personal interest in Pangai Jnr.
The one thing Fittler has decided he won’t allow Queensland to do this year is stand over his side, hence the decision to bring in Pangai Jnr and Young.
“I know I can live with whatever the result is,” Fittler said.
“He (Pangai) understands the same things – that there is risk-reward in him coming in. They go pretty hard these days if things don’t work out.
“I am happy to live with that.”
Queensland have signaled their intent as well. Thomas Flegler is a sin-bin specialist. Tom Gilbert won’t take a backward step.
The sin-bin may get a workout over the next six weeks given the firebrands involved and the number of trigger-happy match officials this season.
The side that keeps its cool will probably prevail but Fittler has laid his cards on the table by bringing in two players who have spent much of their careers walking a fine line.
Fittler is walking a fine line of his own.
His contract expires at the end of this year’s series but he has an automatic trigger for a one-year extension if the Blues win.
He deserves a lifetime deal with the NSW Rugby League for the work he has done in the community and the goodwill he has generated for the code in the state.
The question lingers whether he deserves to remain as coach, particularly if he loses his second series in a row and third in four years.
Even Fittler concedes he may be on thin ice if the Blues slump to another series defeat.
After starting his Origin coaching career with a pair of series wins, life has become a lot tougher in recent years.
“The good thing about Origin is the coach holds it a bit longer but everyone gets back to their club and gets back to footy,” Fittler said.
“When you lose, you wear it longer. We have to win this trophy back. Until we do that I will either lose the job or we will eventually win it back. Hopefully it is this year.”
The dark horse contender for NRL’s buy of the year
The player market frenzy has set-up a hotly contested field for ‘buy of the year’ honours, and former NRL star Mitchell Pearce is tipping a surprise contender to win the crown. See who is in the running and have your say.
‘I dug my heels in’: The Bronco who refused to walk away
On the outer with former coach Kevin Walters, Cory Paix was told he was free to leave the Broncos, but the nuggety rake refused to walk, and now under a new coach his 526-day NRL exile looks set to end.