What a cop out blaming Ashley Klein for the Blues defeat.
Let’s be fair dinkum when summing up how close NSW went to one of the greatest Origin comebacks off all time only to fall agonisingly short.
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On paper it should have been a mismatch from the get-go, and the way the second half played out was proof of that.
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You just can’t deny that this Blues squad is so far superior to Queensland right now that they should have won that match by 40 if they were on their game for the full 80 minutes.
But the fact they allowed the Maroons to jump to a 26-6 halftime lead on the back of an 8-0 penalty count was evidence they went into the game in Perth with a poor attitude and too intent on trying to show how tough they were.
And they got what they deserved.
Yes, there were some rough penalties along the way.
And the toughest of all was the decision not to award a try to Nathan Cleary for the obstruction call against Stefano Utoikamanu that could have ultimately been the difference.
For mine that was just a reward for poor defence because Cleary was through and nothing was going to stop him.
But there was still no excuse for their lack of discipline from the Blues when playing to wrap up the series.
While their execution and not playing to the slippery conditions only made it worse, with a horrible 56 per cent first half completion rate compared to Queensland’s 77 per cent.
You don’t win NRL games completing that low, let alone Origins.
And while the penalty count was as lopsided as it gets in a big game like this, most of them were justified.
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Munster comes to defence of Slater | 12:59
Let’s go through the first half penalties one by one.
Payne Haas holding down.
Angus Crichton crowding in the ruck.
Jarome Luai attempted eye-gouge on Reuben Cotter.
Angus Crichton high tackle.
Zac Lomax elbow to the head.
Luai offside on a downtown kick.
I’ve already said my bit about the Utoikamanu obstruction.
But Hudson Young ball strip, again, what’s Klein supposed to do, pretend he didn’t see it simply because NSW was having a tough night?
And if we’re being real Luai should have been sent to the sin bin for what he did _ and he’s damn lucky he only copped a fine that will allow him to play in the decider.
Of course, NSW can argue Queensland should have been pulled up more for laying all over the ruck, but both sides were guilty of that.
As skipper Isaah Yeo pointed out after the game, the Blues were their own worst enemies, not Klein.
“There’s certainly a few that we were shooting ourselves in the foot with and they were just penalties,” Yeo said.
“Other ones are 50-50.
“Some nights you get them, some nights you don’t.
“So what you can’t do is you can’t go drop the ball early in the next set early in the tackle count when you’ve got the ball.”
And when NSW stopped doing that look what happened.
They completed at 81 per cent and the second half and outscored their opponents four tries to nil, while Lomax’s goalkicking was another factor that let them down.
So it wasn’t a miracle they got as close as they did.
It’s punishment for starting so poorly.
The way to take it out of the referee’s hands is not to commit the offences in the first place.
Then there will be nothing to whinge about in game three regardless of which way the result goes.
Munster proud of the Maroons’ resilience | 02:42
PONGA V WALSH BILLY’S BIGGEST CALL FOR DECIDER
Billy Slater rightly copped it for the team he picked in game one.
But he got it close to spot on in this one and he deserves to be commended for it.
Cameron Munster was an inspired choice as captain.
While Tom Dearden’s performance proved the decision to drop Daly Cherry-Evans should have been made before the start of the series.
Calling up veteran backrower Kurt Capewell was also a masterstroke, even though Slater was widely criticised for it in the build-up.
You’ve got to laugh at the stats that suggest Capewell would be a weak link in defence. He was enormous.
Moving Val Holmes into the centres and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow was another switch that paid huge dividends.
Although there must surely be a debate about either moving Hammer to fullback or bringing in Reece Walsh at fullback after another off night from Kalyn Ponga.
Ponga couldn’t catch a cold and some of his defensive lapses were just not up to scratch, while he hardly looked a threat in attack.
It will be interesting to see how Walsh goes when he lines up against the Sharks on Sunday given his electric return from injury in the Broncos’ recent win over the Titans.
The other argument going forward would be does Moe Fotouaika keep his place or does Slater call up Corey Horsburgh for the decider.
Look how good fellow Raider Hudson Young was for the Blues off the bench.
On the back of a win, you wouldn’t imagine Slater will make any changes for game three unless they are forced through injury or suspension.
Though I’m still not convinced that will be enough to take down the Blues on their home turf in a decider, especially if the Blues get their act together and play with better discipline.
With Mitchell Moses out for the series, Luai did enough in the second half to justify that he keeps his place ahead of Matt Burton who has been in great form for the Bulldogs.
Ponga: ‘I’d like that moment back!’ | 02:07
DID MUNSTER REALLY NEED TO DROP THE F-BOMB?
As if putting up with all the drama surrounding Aaron Woods calling Billy Slater a grub in the build-up wasn’t bad enough.
Did Cameron Munster really need to drop the F-bomb when defending his coach on national TV after the game?
I’ve got to be honest. I was really looking forward to hearing what Munster had to say after such an inspired performance.
That is right up until the moment he forgot he was representing his State and thought he was down the beer garden on a Saturday afternoon watching the races with his mates.
But from the moment the F-bomb dropped I didn’t hear a word Munster said, I just kept thinking, ‘why do that?’
You can understand Munster’s emotions would have been sky high, but it’s not as if he’s a rookie in his first TV interview.
The game has come so far in recent decades it just erodes the credibility for those who don’t watch it week to week when the Queensland captain reverts to swearing on our game’s biggest stage.
We’re not back in the 1980s when this type of thing was not only acceptable but almost expected when players like big Sam Backo didn’t have any media training.
While it’s not the end of the world, Munster is experienced enough to know better.
