Whatever it takes: Cheeky Origin moment you missed

Queensland’s tactics were spot on as they chased down NSW in Origin I — and Ben Hunt got off scot-free with one underhanded move.

Whatever it takes.

That was the attitude Queensland hooker Ben Hunt took in to Wednesday night’s State of Origin opener.

A game-high 49 tackles. An expertly-directed 40-20 kick. And a sneaky moment that largely went unnoticed in the second half.

It was crunch time with the scores locked at 8-8 as the game ticked past the hour-mark. Drastic moves needed to be made to gain the upper hand — and Hunt went low.

The somewhat maligned Maroons star was third man in to the tackle as Matt Gillett and Daly Cherry-Evans wrapped up NSW skipper Boyd Cordner.

At first he appeared to be targeting the Roosters centre’s ankle to bring him to ground — but the St George star had a different motive.

In a tactic which will surely raise the eyebrows of NRL officials, Hunt deliberately ripped Cordner’s boot off before running away and throwing it into the crowd. Cordner was left running around in one shoe for several minutes, during which time he bizarrely chose to take over kicking duties on one occasion.

Only a handful of eagle-eyed viewers appeared to pick up on the incident and, depending on which side of the border they resided, either saw it as despicable — or genius.

At last report, NASA is tracking Boyd Cordner’s boot passing through Orion’s Belt....#Origin

— á–‡Oá—·Eá–‡T OᐯᗩᗪIá—© 👀 (@RobertOvadia) June 5, 2019

Cordner has played 3mins, made 2 tackles and taken a kick with no left boot. Commentators are yet to notice #origin

— Sam Jones (@ummsamjones) June 5, 2019

“Hunt throwing Cordner’s boot 30m hahahahaha what a f** dog,” one wrote.

“Did you see what Ben Hunt did to Boyd Cordner’s shoes! What an AH,” added another.

They kept coming. “Surely lobbing an opposition player’s boot into the stand is a professional foul?,” one questioned.

“So in Origin, it’s OK to rip a bloke’s boot off and throw it as far as you can towards crowd? Bizarre,” another said.

Ben Hunt throwing away that shoe like... #Origin #StateOfOrigin #QLDER #UpTheBlues pic.twitter.com/gMk6LwyQAg

— Sporting News Australia (@sportingnewsau) June 5, 2019

It was part of a masterful performance for the 29-year-old, who was playing out of position and had to listen to desperate pleas for Cameron Smith to come out of Origin retirement to put on the No. 9 jersey in the lead-up to the game.

But Hunt, who plays at halfback for the Dragons, looks like a long-term solution to the departure of the Melbourne Storm legend.

A few thoughts on Origin: NSW dominated Qld through the middle for most of the first half but Qld unearthed weaknesses on the edges and fully exploited them in the 2nd half. DCE controlled the game and Munster and Ponga were constant threats. Ben Hunt was magnificent at hooker.

— Brad Walter (@BradWalterSport) June 5, 2019

Last thought. Ben Hunt has his best #StateOfOrigin game at hooker. I’d be staggered if this is the NSW halves combination to save us. But if it’s 1-1 in Perth we’re back home for the decider. More or less optimism as it comes to hand.

— Tim Barrow (@TheBarrow) June 5, 2019

It won’t be remembered as a MOTM performance, and not as brilliant as Tedesco, Munster, Ponga, but Ben Hunt playing 80 mins at hooker in origin was immense. That’s #origin. #QLDer

— Michael Atkinson (@kinson88) June 5, 2019

It was the first time since game two, 2003, that Queensland had played an Origin without one of their greats Smith, Greg Inglis, Billy Slater, Johnathan Thurston or Cooper Cronk.

But Hunt, Kalyn Ponga, Cameron Munster and new skipper Daly Cherry-Evans heralded a new dawn.

“For me he was the stand out choice as captain,” Queensland coach Kevin Walters said of Cherry-Evans. “What he has been through mentally and to bounce back and show what type of person is, that shows real steeliness and that’s what you need in your captain. It’s great for DCE to get the reward that some people thought may have avoided him a couple of years ago.”

WALTERS: WE MUST GET BETTER

Accused of losing the plot for adopting a coach whisperer, Walters joked he didn’t mind being called a “loony” after the Maroons’ 18-14 State of Origin series-opening win.

But he was deadly serious when he claimed his side must be better in this month’s Origin II in Perth if they are to pull off a series victory.

Walters raised eyebrows when he adopted mind coach Bradley Charles Stubbs ahead of Origin I, ditching Queensland’s traditional underdog tag and claiming the Maroons “will win” the series opener.

Bemused Sydney critics had a field day as Walters spruiked Stubbs’ philosophy in the lead-up and refused to mention NSW by name and threatened fines to any Queensland players who did.

Walters appeared to have the last laugh when the Maroons reeled in an 8-0 halftime lead to draw first blood in the series thanks to a stunning two-try haul by man of the match, winger Dane Gagai.

But Walters still raised chuckles at his expense when he was reminded of the Sydney media’s barbs at the post match press conference that he had been putting on a Stubbs-inspired bizarre act.

“I am very passionate about rugby league in this state. If that makes me a loony then there a lot of loonys up in Queensland I can tell you,” Walters said.

He got another laugh when asked if he had received a congratulatory message from Stubbs, who is reportedly indisposed on a tropical island.

“He is on an island somewhere and he can only whisper so I haven’t heard from him,” Walters said.

“But his involvement in all of this has been great. However, we haven’t achieved anything yet — there are two games of football left.”

Indeed, Walters wasn’t getting ahead of himself, admitting the Maroons must improve if they are to begin a new era with an upset series win. Defending champions NSW were raging favourites for 2019 with the Maroons opening a new chapter following the retirement of the last of their future Immortals Slater and Inglis.

Walters said they still had much work to do to seal a series win in June 23’s game two in Perth.

“We are very respectful of the win but there’s no relief (with the win),” he said.

“We came here to put together a good performance but I felt we didn’t do that for 80 minutes.

“We are out of the blocks and I am stoked for the win but the team knows we need to get better.”

— with AAP