Pressure builds on NSW halfback Nathan Cleary

Hooked debutant Cody Walker is not the only Blues playmaker in the gun after Nathan Cleary became the most under pressure man in NSW.

Nathan Cleary was hard to spot.

Nothing tells the story of State of Origin Game 1 more than the fact all of Queensland’s playmakers were better than the two men selected to lead NSW.

Nathan Cleary and Cody Walker are the two lightning rods for criticism after the Blues’ 18-14 defeat, with only Latrell Mitchell’s sin-binning taking the heat off the pair.

Cleary was timid, either choosing not to inject himself or simply being overlooked by teammates when it came time to make the big plays.

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He was forced to make 33 tackles and was never in the contest after being left exhausted and impotent by the Maroons’ ball-runners.

Walker struggled right from the start and his defensive breakdowns alongside Boyd Cordner and Mitchell were the weakness Queensland targeted from beginning to end.

The Blues struggled with their fifth tackle options and for that, Cleary has no excuses.

Aussie rugby league commentator Roy Masters wrote in Fairfax Media earlier this week there were concerns about Cleary and Walker’s ability to lead the team around, considering both are overruled by their playmaking partners for their NRL clubs.

His observation turned out to be brutally accurate for NSW.

“Who will steer it around the paddock? Neither half is the dominant caller at his club. James Maloney organises the play at Penrith and Adam Reynolds is the game manager at Souths,” Masters wrote.

“Their club partners — Penrith’s Nathan Cleary and Souths’ Cody Walker — receive directions, rather than give them.

“Cleary and Walker will take their preferred positions on the field for NSW — Cleary on the right and Walker on the left — but who will drive the wagon?”

The unfortunate reality for NSW is neither of them took hold of the team to make it their own.

It’s why The Daily Telegraph’s Phil Rothfield on Wednesday called on Blues selectors to look back at Maloney, Reynolds and Mitchell Pearce for Game 2 in Perth.

Nathan Cleary is hanging by a thread.

“Cody Walker had an unhappy debut and Nathan Cleary, after an excellent start, got lost in the second-half when he should have taken control of the game as great halfbacks do,” Rothfield wrote.

“Clearing kicks at critical stages were left to Jack Wighton and Boyd Cordner, while Cleary was abandoned on the right side.

“Great Origin halves take over and demand the fifth tackle kicks in these situations.”

Cleary and Walker didn’t.

While refusing to criticise his playmakers, Blues coach Brad Fittler did say he was disappointed with their failure to support their teammates as both Damien Cook and James Tedesco poked their noses through the Maroons’ defensive line.

“We made those breaks. We didn’t capitalise on them. Halves may have stepped up a bit more there,” Fittler said.

“I think Cook and James Tedesco were absolutely brilliant through the middle.”

Both Reynolds and Maloney could have been confident of their chances at receiving Blues jumpers when the NRL’s form playmaker Luke Keary was ruled out with concussion last Saturday.

However, Fittler opted to stick with Cleary at halfback despite Penrith’s horror start to the NRL season.

Cleary may not even get a chance to redeem himself before Game 2 if Fittler folds to public pressure.