2016 State Of Origin, Game One: New South Wales Squad
Is Matt Moylan the dawn of a new era?
The depths of winter brings State Of Origin footy and this time of the year is a bit like Sterlo's call to drop Paul Gallen; cray cray. Laurie Daley got State Of Origin fever started, naming his New South Wales squad for game one and he didn't disappoint in serving up more drama to chew over with a squad that is as fresh as it is weird.
We'll start with the blokes who were near-certainties to get picked. Greg Bird's in great form with the Titans, Boyd Cordner has shown what a physical presence he is on the edge in only a few weeks with the Chooks, Blake Ferguson played for Australia so he was always likely, Josh Dugan's gotta be there, so do Gallen, David Klemmer, James Tamou and Aaron Woods.
Michael Jennings and Josh Morris have done nothing wrong, they were always likely to be selected but the presence of Dugan in the centres confuses matters here. Two certified NRL centres and Dugan, who looks like he will have to make way for Matt Moylan. Throw in Ferguson and along with Josh Mansour and we've got six outside backs in the hunt for five spots, as of right now I'd roll with; Moylan, Mansour, Jennings, Dugan, Ferguson. No room for Morris and he's hardly put a footy wrong, it's just that Jennings and Dugan offer the greater attacking threat and Moylan's form has been in sublime form for Penrith.
NSW haven't had a slick ball-playing fullback since Jarryd Hayne - even he was a runner first - and instead relied on Dugan's running to offer the spark last year. Moylan has shown his toughness in the NRL, charging into defensive lines recklessly but we consistently see little touches of class, which will be a boost for NSW's attack.
James Maloney and Adam Reynolds will be the halves combination, with Reynolds finally rewarded for his work with the Bunnies. NSW don't need a game-breaker of a halfback, they need precision and control which Reynolds offers in spades, that's his bread and butter for the Rabbitohs. Both are smaller blokes and will be tageted for a mountain of defensive work, which I view as a major issue, especially for Maloney.
This could be why Daley has gone all in on a beastly forward pack, which was the foundation of the Blues' success. This is where most of the notable omissions lay as there's no Beau Scott, no Trent Merrin and no Ryan Hoffman - Scott and Merrin have grounds for complaint. I suspect we'll see Woods, Tamou and Gallen start with Klemmer and Fifita coming on through the middle which leaves Bird, Cordner, Jackson and Tyson Frizell competing for two starting spots with one likely to come off the bench, maybe two?
Cordner and Frizell (more than Jackson) are brutal runners of the footy, they hit good lines and have nice hands but it's the intent that they run with that catches the eye. In dropping Scott and Hoffman, Daley has opted for a more dynamic presence on the edges, perhaps going down a more attacking route. Expect Jackson to do a job, whether it's out on the edge or through the middle, he's a good lad to carry in a squad like this.
A lot depends on whether Bird plays on an edge or through the middle, he's been a gun for the Titans mainly out on the left edge but starting him at lock with Gallen starting at prop would be funky. This would see Tamou move the the bench and a possible bench-forward rotation of Tamou, Fifita and Klemmer ... three absolute units who are all very mobile for big men.
If Daley really wanted to shake the apple cart, further going down that attacking route, he would have selected Michael Ennis over Robbie Farah. Ennis has become a genuine play-maker from dummy-half, surpassing Farah in this regard on a weekly basis in the NRL. Farah is still a potent threat himself, he's just not carrying the same form as Ennis and you can't go wrong with ruffling Queensland's feathers via the Grub.
Woods, Tamou, Gallen, Cordner and Bird to start. Frizell/Jackson Klemmer, Fifita and Dylan Walker to come off the bench.
Dylan Walker!?
How did he get there?
Walker hasn't quite been able to settle in the halves at Manly and we're none-the-wiser as to where the future in the NRL is. Throw in the average vibes coming from Manly this season and there's no real reason to select Walker, not when the Blues have a few other handy candidates for the bench utility role.
When you throw the Manly context out the window, I quite like this selection from Daley. Ever since he came into the NRL, a staple of Walker's play has been his nifty footwork and lighting speed over 10-20 metres, throw in a tool-belt kitted out with NRL half skills and Walker is an attacking threat who can chime in with pretty much anything.
The Blues have generally lacked someone coming off the bench who offers a bit of x-factor and while I'm not quite convinced that Walker is cut from the same cloth as Michael Morgan and can defend in the middle, he oozes x-factor.
State Of Origin is full of little narratives and what Laurie Daley the coach can extract out of Walker is an early favourite of mine. Daley will back his ability as a coach, along with his staff's ability to get the best out of Walker in whatever role he is selected in, Walker is Daley's wildcard.
Walker the wildcard and the make up of the outside backs (Moylan vs Dugan, Josh Morris??) are the two biggest storylines that I'm already excited about. Oi, Kevie Walters bruh, where's your squad?