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BEN Hunt’s St George Illawarra teammates have gone into bat for the under fire Maroon, saying he should have been retained at halfback for State of Origin III.
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DRAGONS SAY DROPPING HUNT WAS WRONG
Ben Hunt’s St George Illawarra teammates say it was the wrong call for Queensland to drop the halfback to the bench for the State of Origin dead rubber.
Hunt bore the brunt of criticism for the Maroons’ series-deciding Game II loss, and Queensland coach Kevin Walters admitted on Monday his team had lacked leadership in the halves as he selected Daly Cherry-Evans as No.7. But that comment didn’t go down well in Wollongong, with Dragons hooker Cameron McInnes coming out in support of his teammate after the pair had helped take the Saints to the top of the NRL ladder this season.
“I think it’s the wrong decision,” McInnes said.
“They can do what they want, I’m not a Queensland fan. I’m NSW. But I don’t think he deserved to be put back to No.14.
“I thought he was their best player in Game I, he kept them in the game. In Game II he probably had a couple of moments he’d like to take back. But that’s footy. “To put him to the bench I don’t think he deserves that. But he’ll play that No.14 role the best he can and he won’t complain and that’s the great thing about him.” Hunt’s response to stinging criticism last week was telling in his ability to bounce back.
In his only NRL match before the sides for next week’s Origin were named, the 28-year-old kickstarted the Dragons’ comeback against Parramatta with a deep grubber for Euan Aitken to score.
It was a similar play that had him roasted after Origin II, when he kicked dead with a grubber while NSW were down to 12 men late in the close contest. “Any media or things out there, he didn’t care about that – he just wants to play footy,” McInnes said.
“Obviously the magnitude of the game in Origin, it stands out more. But players make mistakes in games, we all do.
“The good thing about him is he’s so relaxed and level headed that he comes back and plays well for us.” McInnes wasn’t alone in his support.
Last week Dragons coach Paul McGregor said the criticism had been over the top, while centre Tim Lafai also questioned the demotion on Monday. “I thought he deserved to keep his starting spot and I’m sure the other boys did too,” he said.
Meanwhile Walters insisted Hunt still belonged in the Origin arena and claimed the move wasn’t made solely off the back of the Sydney loss. “We know he belongs at this level, he does belong in this Queensland team, it’s just a matter of finding his role within the side,” Walters said. “The interchange role is one that can be really effective at this level. “To blame him for what happened in Game II is absolutely ridiculous, that has never been our stance.”
-AAP
JUDICIARY WRAP: CLARK FACING A WEEK ON THE SIDELINES
South Sydney forward Jason Clark is facing a one-game NRL ban for dangerous contact on North Queensland star Jason Taumalolo.
Clark was on Monday charged with grade one dangerous contact on Taumalolo in the second half of Sunday’s win in Cairns.
He would have escaped suspension with an early guilty plea but has 70 carryover points.
The Rabbitohs have the bye this week before they meet Canterbury on Saturday week.
Cowboys forward Shaun Fensom was hit with a grade one dangerous throw on Rabbitohs utility Cameron Murray from the same game but won’t miss any game time with an early guilty plea.
Wests Tigers second-rower Michael Chee Kam was the other player stung by the match review committee from Sunday’s games after his possible crusher tackle on Gold Coast centre Dale Copley.
Chee Kam can avoid suspension with an early guilty plea, freeing him to play in the Tigers’ next match against competition pacesetters St George Illawarra in a fortnight.
-AAP
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MONDAY BUNKER: PENRITH ON THE ROPES?
PENRITH have looked every inch the premiership contender for much of the season despite a fair number of injuries testing their depth to its absolute limits.
For the first time, cracks are starting to appear.
Not only are Penrith still missing backline mainstays Waqa Blake and Josh Mansour, as well as fullback Dylan Edwards, they will also be without powerful backrower Viliame Kikau for some time following his knee injury in this loss.
Throw in the representative duties of Nathan Cleary, James Maloney and Tyrone Peachey, who all looked exhausted and below their best in this clash, and you have the recipe for a mid-season slump.
Since their 28-2 belting of the Dragons, Penrith have beaten Canberra by a point in fortunate circumstances and lost to the Roosters and Manly.
The errors and lack of attention to detail against the Sea Eagles were most unlike the Panthers and they’ve now dropped to fourth.
A clash with the Warriors, sans their Origin stars, will prove a serious test of Penrith’s mettle and defeat will put them outside the top four for the first time since Round 3.
More here: https://bit.ly/2II7D8K
BLUES CHANGE A WINNING FORMULA
Brad Fittler has dropped Matt Prior from the sqaud for Origin III, handing Tariq Sims his State of Origin debut.
More here: https://bit.ly/2MENYJ5
DCE, OATES RECALLED FOR QUEENSLAND
Daly Cherry-Evans and Corey Oates are back in the Queensland side for Origin III.
The Maroons have also named a new look forward pack.
More here: https://bit.ly/2KEtLCw
QUEENSLAND DELAY TEAM NAMING AS CHAOS REIGNS
In case you missed it, the Maroons will hold off naming their team until today after a number of injuries struck them down on Sunday night.
More here: https://bit.ly/2NeVDiA
GREEN TAKES A SWIPE AT REYNOLDS TRY
North Queensland coach Paul Green has taken a swipe at the NRL referees over a controversial Adam Reynolds try during the Cowboys’ 21-20 loss to South Sydney. Reynolds was the hero for the Rabbitohs at Barlow Park in Cairns on Sunday, booting a 79th-minute field goal to break the Cowboys’ hearts. However, it was the Bunnies No.7’s first-half try that divided opinion after the Cowboys argued the Souths halfback took advantage after Jake Granville was impeded by George Burgess.
Granville fell to the ground as he came into contact with lead runner Burgess, with Walker grubbering for himself through a gaping hole to even the scores at 6-6 after 15 minutes.
Green bit his tongue after he was last year slugged with a $10,000 fine for criticising the whistleblowers in his side’s loss to Melbourne. “I’m not allowed to comment on refs’ decisions any more. I can’t afford it,” Green said.
Asked if he thought Granville was impeded, Green said: “Yeah, I did. He knocked him over.” The try proved decisive as the Cowboys’ slumped to their 12th loss of the year to leave them second-last.
The play divided commentators, with some agreeing with bunker official Jared Maxwell’s decision to overturn the on-field no-try call because Granville had committed to tackling Burgess.
Nine Network commentator Phil Gould said it was a “brilliant” decision. “Jake Granville goes in and tackles him. He tackles the bloke without the ball for a start,” Gould said.
Greg Alexander slammed the call on Fox Sports.
“Burgess ran straight into him, just took him out,” he said.
-AAP
COOPER’S STARTLING STAT
by Peter Badel
Here’s five things we learned from North Queensland’s 21-20 loss to South Sydney.
1. It’s sad to say – but Johnathan Thurston won’t be getting a premiership finale. The Cowboys’ finals hopes are officially dead after a gut-wrenching loss to the Rabbitohs, robbing their champion Thurston of one final playoffs fling. Thurston was simply inspirational, setting up two early tries, and deserves better than a hollow regular-season finish against the Titans.
2. North Queensland players should apologise to Thurston for consistently letting him down this season. Two appalling defensive misses led to tries and cost them victory. The first was by Coen Hess on Sam Burgess, enabling Cody Walker to cross just seconds before the break. Then Kyle Feldt was guilty of jersey-grabbing for Robert Jennings’ 75th-minute solo try that kept Souths alive.
3. It’s hard to believe Cowboys fullback Lachlan Coote is still off-contract. The premiership-winning custodian tried his heart out yesterday and scored a clever solo try that almost snatched victory in the 70th minute. The Cowboys would be foolish to move him on.
4. The jury is out on whether Te Maire Martin is a long-term NRL playmaker. In the absence of injured Michael Morgan, Martin has a golden opportunity to shine, but struggles with his option-taking and game awareness.
5. Cowboys back-rower Gavin Cooper came up with a rare statistical quirk in his 200th club game. He went a staggering 62 minutes without making a single hit-up, yet still managed an early try when he won the race to a Thurston grubber. The Maroons back-rower finished with just 10 metres from three runs.