Why Billy Slater was given the team he wanted as Maroons face crisis

There was some lengthy debate behind closed doors before the shock decision to mysteriously axe a star forward - and it paints a grim picture for coach Billy Slater.

The mysterious disappearance of Beau Fermor from Queensland’s State of Origin team has indicated there has been some spirited debate behind closed doors and Billy Slater has got the team he wanted.

Impressive Gold Coast utility forward Fermor was surprisingly dropped after playing just 16 minutes in the opening game and not doing much wrong in a team driven on to the back foot.

Many pundits wanted him in the starting team but he has been axed for game two and went on to make an impressive 159 running metres in the ­Titans’ win over Manly.

Make no mistake, this is the team that Slater wanted even though he is part of a three-man selection panel with Gene Miles and Darren Lockyer.

Beau Fermor of the Queensland Maroons ahead of the 2025 State of Origin Game 1 at Suncorp Stadium on May 28, 2025. Picture: Scott Davis/NRL Imagery

If Slater had said “I really want Beau Fermor’’, there is no way he would have been dropped.

In cricket, when Australian coaches were under extreme pressure, the national selection panel used to try to give the coach the team he wanted as if to say: “We know the pressure is on … it’s your head on the block … if you feel strongly about someone, he will play.’’

That, essentially, is what has happened with this team as the Maroons face desperate times after three successive losses.

THE CAPED CRUSADER

This column has consistently trumpeted the worth of Kurt Capewell and the stardust he sprinkles over every club he goes to due to his professionalism and willingness to call other players out.

The Broncos and Warriors have benefited by his presence and it’s great to see him get a State of Origin recall – but there is one part of his game he must address in Perth.

Capewell has missed 77 tackles this season – around six a game – which is 13 more than any other player in the competition.

In a match in which Queensland is conceding size, speed and cleverness to the opposition, Capewell needs to have his best defensive game of the ­season.

FIN-TASTIC

The Dolphins are yet to make the finals but they are taking fans on a thrilling journey.

To have scored more points than any other team just over halfway through the competition is an outstanding effort and says much about the rich flavour the Dolphins bring to the competition.

They may have won only half their 14 games but the Phins have scored an exceptional 408 points in 14 games at 29 per game, just ahead of the rampaging Storm on 404 and the Raiders on 396.

Dolphins star Isaiya Katoa. Picture: Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images

No one is more excited by their progress than a leading Redcliffe harness racing identity who, at the start of the year, backed them at $10 to be the leading Queensland team this season when the bookies had the Dolphins favourites for the wooden spoon.

He’s not there yet but they are showing promise. Dolphins half Isaiya Katoa is starting to get the plaudits he deserves but his scrapbook is still about one-fifth as big at Lachlan Galvin’s who, if you believe some reports, is likely to soon rival Sir Donald Bradman as Australia’s greatest sportsman.

The Storm has been heavily backed into $2.60 favourite to win the competition.

That seems under the odds given it is not a team without flaws.

TOUGH TO BEAR

The NRL is being too tough on the new Perth Bears franchise by demanding that it has to wait until November 1 to sign players.

Every time the AFL welcomes a new team, it gets showered with draft picks to help it survive.

The NRL, by contrast, gives no concessions at all, which will make it extremely tough for new coach Mal Meninga to recruit players.

Slater said on Channel 9 ­recently that Perth should be allowed to recruit players now.

It was a solid point.