Sharks skipper Paul Gallen goes off with knee twinge but it won't be enough to stop him playing State of Origin II

INSPIRATIONAL skipper Paul Gallen assured Blues fans last night that a twinge in his knee would not be enough to keep him out State of Origin II.

INSPIRATIONAL skipper Paul Gallen assured Blues fans last night that a twinge in his knee would not be enough to keep him out of the must-win Origin II clash with Queensland.

NSW coach Ricky Stuart - and millions of Blues fans - feared the worst when Gallen disappeared from Parramatta Stadium last night with 20 minutes on the clock.

Gallen was troubled by the same knee that kept him out of the Melbourne clash before Origin I, and hampered his training in the lead-up to the opening Maroons match-up.

"But I was ready to come back on tonight, so I'll be right," said Gallen, whose early exit all but assured Cronulla lost to the Eels.

"Once Parramatta scored that next try (to make it 29-20), 'Flanno' (Shane Flanagan) said don't worry about going back on."

"I was making a run and felt a twinge, but I haven't missed a training session in two weeks and I haven't trained with it strapped.

"I'll just take it easy the next couple of days."

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If NSW are any hope of drawing level with the Maroons, Gallen will need to be 100 per cent fit.

Cronulla will also be worse off because of his unavailability, and lost direction last night up the middle when he went to the sidelines.

Gallen said the shift from front-row to lock for NSW would not lighten his workload - nor lessen the workload on his knee - and backed the selection of debutant prop Tim Grant.

"He deserves his shot, he's been playing good enough," Gallen said. "Tim is a big boy, he's had an unlucky run with injuries. That's why his selection surprised a few people. But I saw him play against Manly a couple of weeks ago. Manly are a rugged team and he stood up to all of them."

While Stuart would have had a scare with Gallen, it's certain he enjoyed the two-try performance of Eels star Jarryd Hayne and his other Blues member Todd Carney, who guided Cronulla around well in the opening half.

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