It has been revealed that the Blues complained about five refereeing decisions after being upset by the Crimson at the beginning of the series.
Queensland enjoyed scrubbing the green in Sydney, but five lineball calls could be found to review any rugby league game, and at least three of NSW’s complaints were 50-50 calls.
The other two were decisions in fractions of a second that reflected the human nature of arbitration. Ashley Klein has been reappointed to officiate the second match in Perth this Sunday.
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The Blues wanted an explanation for the following calls from Klein at the start of the series, according to SMH.
– Kurt Capewell left early to put pressure on a Cleary kick.
– Patrick Carrigan tackles Cleary late after kicking in the second half.
– Kalyn Ponga won his team a set of seven tackles despite jumping off the field and into the goal to catch a kick by Nathan Cleary.
– A penalty kick for Selwyn Cobbo who was completely unmarked in the box.
– Lindsay Collins holds Junior Paulo in the scrum before Daly Cherry-Evans scores.
NRL’s referee boss Jared Maxwell – with whom Blues coach Brad Fittler spoke about his concerns before the first leg – did not hesitate to nominate Klein for the second leg.
LOCKS SLIP
Queensland voter Darren Lockier has ruled out any delayed changes to the Crimson’s starting line-up ahead of Sunday’s match II.
Immortal Wally Lewis asked Lockyer if Ben Hunt would start hooker again with Harry Grant coming off the bench.
Lockier seemed surprised by the question before revealing that coach Billy Slater could experiment with the 17 named this week.
“Well, yes, there may be some late changes,” Lockyer told WWOS.
But Lockyer was quick to point out that the Maroons’ coaches were happy with how Hunt and Grant combined a win in their game.
“The idea is that Ben (Hunt) takes the bite out of the game and lets Harry come in and do his thing – and he was very good in the first game,” Lockier said.
The panel also discussed whether Patrick Carrigan – who almost beat the player from the bench in the first game – would start.
“Sometimes when I get to these big games, I look at the bench first before I look at 1-13, because the bench plays a big role in the … outcome of the game,” Lockyer said.
“Our bench was really, really good, and I think Billy thinks Carrigan was so good (because) he came off the bench, (and) he wants the same effort or the same impact.”
FREDDY TO BEAR THE RESPONSIBILITY
NSW Blues coach Brad Fittler must take responsibility if his changes fail to beat Queensland in the State of Origin Game II on Sunday.
This is his view Daily TelegraphPaul Crawley after Fittler made big changes to his team after losing 16-10 in the first game of the series.
According to Crawley, Fittler was the biggest critic of his side and his sweeping changes are an admission that the selectors were wrong in the beginning.
“They have made a lot of changes since they lost by six points, I think it is an admission that NNO was wrong,” said Crawley. NRL 360.
“I think Billy definitely coached him, NSW admitted from their Game II selection that they were wrong.
“NSW’s biggest critic was its coach, because he is the one who spent months completing his first team.
“Then, a six-point defeat, he made massive changes and came into this game thinking he had chosen a better team and probably had a better side.
“But if they do not set a goal this time, it is Brad Fitler who must wear the result.”
The question was whether head coach Billy Slater beat Fitler, who has led NSW on 13 occasions.
But looking at Queensland’s coaching staff, which includes Slater and Maroon legend Cameron Smith, Crowley believes the NNO should have seen an ambush coming.
“You ask the question, did Billy coach him? “Of course they did,” Crawley said.
“Queensland coached him, they played with more momentum, more speed on the shelf, the pressure they put on Nathan was crucial.
“They came up with a plan and the plan worked, and I think Billy was the first coach, so you knew nothing about the style that was going to come about other than the fact that he spent his entire career playing in Melbourne.
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“He has Cameron Smith in their staff, you do not have to be a genius to know what they are going to do.”
FITTLER’S CLAIM KILLED IN QUESTION
“Freddy” after the match was disappointed with the way his team handled Maroons’ tactics and the NRL 360 panel believes the Blues should have been waiting for them from the start.
Meanwhile, it was revealed that the difference in speed between NSW and Queensland rock was marginal – with 0.2 seconds separating the sides.
“They make me think it was not justified (Fittler’s critique), they make me believe in the speed of the rock and play the balls in Origin. I was faster than I was in an average NRL game and the difference between NSW and “Queensland went down in a split second,” Crawley said.
“In maybe a dozen in-game tackles that are really crucial moments in the game, there Queensland did its job at NSW, which is just smart training.
“You do not overdo it, you just do it the right way.”
“How was NSW surprised by Queensland tactics? “This is the part I challenged,” said Kent.
“Queensland had recognized it early, we saw Tino Faasuamaleawi there looking at the referee with a player down, knowing he still has a few seconds left,” Anastasia said.
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“I have not seen an NSW player do that.”
“This is the issue, why, because NSW just found out about it in the game, Brad Fittler is in his 13th game as Origin coach, Billy Slater is in his first, Billy knew it, Freddy did not.” said Kent.
“Jack Wighton was completely deflated at your point where he was not picked up,” Rizzio said.