Origin 2020: Maroons teammates tip Tino Fa’asuamaleaui to target Payne Haas in Suncorp decider
When Tino Fa’asuamaleaui collides with NSW’s Payne Haas fireworks are expected – and that’s exactly what the Maroons want.
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Leading Queensland stars have given Tino Fa’asuamaleaui a licence to “smash” Payne Haas as the Maroons young gun received the backing to renew hostilities with his NSW rival in the Origin decider.
Maroons teammates Felise Kaufusi, Valentine Holmes and Ben Hunt have urged Fa’asuamaleaui to legally attack Haas in a battle of two young forward firebrands in the series decider this Wednesday night at Suncorp Stadium.
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The worst-rating Origin series in 24 years received a spicy shot-in-the-arm when 116kg Fa’asuamaleaui and 118kg Haas traded punches, sparking a melee in NSW’s series-levelling 34-10 victory in Game Two at ANZ Stadium.
The 20-year-olds escaped suspension from the NRL, hit with only $700 fines for contrary conduct, clearing the path for Big Tino and Broncos hulk Haas to square off again in the latest instalment of what shapes as a 10-year Origin rivalry.
As revealed by The Courier-Mail, the duo’s rivalry dates back to 2017, when Fa’asuamaleaui sledged Haas in an under-18s Origin game, believing the NSW prop was running scared after refusing to run directly at him from a tap restart.
While Maroons coach Wayne Bennett blamed the media for their latest spat at Homebush,
Queensland teammates relished the sight of Fa’asuamaleaui flexing his muscle and vowed to support him targeting Haas again.
“I expect them to go head-to-head,” said Kaufusi, also Fa’asuamaleaui’s Storm colleague.
“Whether or not punches will be thrown, I don’t know, but they will be ripping into each other on Wednesday night.
“He (Tino) is aggressive and he is young. You definitely don’t want to lose that aggression, just be smarter … and smash him (Haas) legally and rip into him with his defence or his attack.
“In the heat of the moment they are both very passionate people for their state. When things are going either way people are going to fire up. That is what they did.
“We don‘t see that biff these days. I don’t know what that was, maybe a bit of frustration. It was a bit funny to see.
“It will be good to watch that battle again.”
Some of Origin’s most memorable moments have involved heated one-on-one duels.
In 1991, Blues hit man Mark Geyer almost came to blows as he stared down Queensland icon Wally ‘The King’ Lewis in the pouring rain at the SFS.
NSW hooking legend Benny Elias waged war with the entire Queensland team and relished ruining Mal Meninga’s Lang Park farewell in 1994, while David Barnhill and Billy Moore spearheaded a wild brawl 12 months later at the MCG.
While Haas played down talk of a genuine feud, the Maroons will now tap into the emotion of the 40th anniversary of the night Arthur Beetson led Queensland onto Lang Park for Origin’s debut in 1980.
Queensland skipper Daly Cherry-Evans appeared to have stern words with Fa’asuamaleaui in the ANZ sheds after the loss, but Maroons teammate Hunt implored Tino to maintain the rage.
“It was good to see it actually,” he said.
“It reminded me of being a kid watching State of Origin in the lounge room.
“There would always be a scuffle and that’s what Origin should be about, sometimes things get heated out there.
“The boys (Haas and Fa’asuamaleaui) got a bit carried away but they are free to play this week and I think that’s a good thing.
“It looked like Daly was getting stuck into Tino, I haven‘t asked him what he actually said to him, but I know Daly appreciates Tino and what he brings.
“I don’t know if they were words of encouragement or pull your head in, I’m not too sure.
“I don’t have a problem at all with anything that happened, you want your big boys standing up for your little fellas and that’s what Tino did.
“No guys in our shed will take a backward step and Tino just showed that.”
“Payne Haas is used to dominating but I felt the Maroons forwards did a decent job on him in the series so far and they should keep up the pressure.
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Haas was outstanding in Origin II, charging for 157 metres, and Maroons fullback Valentine Holmes warned Fa’asuamaleaui to play with controlled aggression to halt the Blues bookend.
“I loved it, it’s good to have in the game,” he said.
“Obviously you don‘t want to be losing guys (to the sin bin) and playing with 12 men on 13.
“But Tino was standing up for himself. He wears his heart on his sleeve, he was playing tough and aggressive and that‘s what we want.
“We don’t want him to be silly, but we have to go after their middles and put it over them.
“We don’t want him getting sent off so we just have to be smarter and hit harder than their middles.”
Originally published as Origin 2020: Maroons teammates tip Tino Fa’asuamaleaui to target Payne Haas in Suncorp decider
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