Your QLD team

[Alec]

Holmes and Folau? wow the Maroons would be scrapping the bottom of the barrel if 2 rookies with barely any first grade experience behind them would be the front line candidates.

If I was a Queensland fan I would much prefer Copley or Oates or even Vidot over Holmes and Folau.

What did you think when Klemmer and Sione MattUtai were picked for Australia?

I don't really have faith in Copley as an Origin player yet. He's either a winger who can't catch, or a centre who can't pass.

 

[Broncoman]

What did you think when Klemmer and Sione MattUtai were picked for Australia?

I don't really have faith in Copley as an Origin player yet. He's either a winger who can't catch, or a centre who can't pass.

Mata'tiua; couldn't really believe it and was just dumbfounded

Klemmer; he has played for a couple of years and is one of the best up and coming forwards so I could live with it, plus i'm a big fan of him. Wouldn't surprise me if he got a NSW spot this year.

We didn't really have anyone else to pick from and some players were picked before they were ready for representative duty. We were scrapping for anyone.

 

[Mister Wright]

It really does show how much lack of depth QLD has compared to NSW. It doesn't help that there are only 3 Queensland based NRL teams for an entire NRL competition that has 99.98% of it's talent developed in two states.

If all of Slater, Boyd & Hodges are out you would seriously have to consider selecting Morgan at fullback with Inglis holding his left centre spot with Chambers his centre partner and Gagai & Copely on the wings.

 

[Cult]

1 Billy Slater
2 Will Chambers
3 Greg Inglis
4 Justin Hodges
5 Corey Oates/Dane Gagai
6 Jonathan Thurston
7 Cooper Cronk
8 Matt Scott
9 Cameron Smith
10 Nate Myles
11 Matt Gillett
12 Sam Thaiday
13 Corey Parker
14 Ben Hunt
15 Josh McGuire
16 Dylan Napa
17 Gavin Cooper
18 Dane Gagai/Corey Oates

NSW don't have a chance.

 

[Unbreakable]

Gillett has been very quite so far this season in the offensive side of things, his defence has improved, but his attack has been virtually non-existent.

I don't think he's a lock to be in the team.

 

[Splinter]

Does Josh McGuire getting picked for Samoa affect his origin chances? I am not clear on the changing nation status

 

[Super Freak]

This is the rule.

3.3 A player who is eligible to play for more than one country shall be entitled to elect for which country he wishes to play. When a player plays a Senior International Match for a country, he is deemed to have elected to play for that country. Subject to Rule 3.5, once an election is made the player may not play Senior representative rugby league for any other country until the end of the next World Cup tournament, or the expiry of two years, whichever is earlier (“Election Period”).

3.4 After the expiry of an Election Period, the player may elect to play for another country if he is eligible, but once he so elects (or is deemed to elect by playing in a Senior International Match) he may not play for another country until the expiry of another Election Period.

3.5 During an Election Period, a player may change from one country to another for which he is eligible pursuant to Rule 3.1, with the approval of the Federation (but he may only change once in each Election Period).

But apparently he can switch back to Australia this year..

Who knows?

 

[Foordy]

Reading the above rules, it appears to me that since McGuire hasn't played rep footy for Australia (or QLD) he would be able to switch allegiances to Australia to play origin. Using his one "switch per election period"

But once he does, he couldn't switch back to Samoa until after the world cup (or 2 years which ever is earlier)

 

[Harry Sack]

Reading the above rules, it appears to me that since McGuire hasn't played rep footy for Australia (or QLD) he would be able to switch allegiances to Australia to play origin. Using his one "switch per election period"

But once he does, he couldn't switch back to Samoa until after the world cup (or 2 years which ever is earlier)

Yeah, that was my understanding as well.

 

[Sproj]

I'm going to assume Slater, Boyd and Guerra are out:

1. Inglis
2. Oates
3. Gagai
4. Hodges
5. Nielsen
6. Thurston
7. Cronk
8. Scott
9. Smith
10. Myles
11. Gillett
12. Thaiday
13. Parker

14. Milford
15. McGuire
16. Papalli
17. Napa

18. Hunt
19. Segeyaro
20. Sims

i know a lot of those choices will not be popular but we have to get some your guys in and around the team.

 

[Harry Sack]

Slater was in camp for the Test, so I'd be surprised if he's out tbh. What's the word on Guerra?

 

[Rhys van Beurden]

Assuming everything is dandy and everyone is fit, I'd go with this:

1. Slater
2. Boyd
3. Inglis
4. Hodges
5. Chambers
6. Thurston
7. Cronk
8. Scott
9. Smith
10. Myles
11. Thaiday
12. Guerra
13. Parker

14. Segeyaro
15. McGuire
16. Napa
17. Gillett

That team would poop it in. I would have Segeyaro play the role DCE plays, not necessarily because DCE is bad, but to use the position to blood some future spine players who otherwise wouldn't be able to make the team. But obviously there are question marks on a few players, such as Slater, Boyd and Guerra. In such a case, I would give Gagai Boyd's spot, Copley Inglis' spot, and Inglis Slater's spot in the backline, and swap Thaiday to the left side for Guerra (as he played for the Broncos against the Eels), have Gillett come into the starting right back row position, and have Gavin Cooper or Josh Papalii come onto the bench.

 

[QUEENSLANDER]

Is it just me, or have the QLD selectors kinda shot themselves in the foot over the last few years. We have had a brilliant team with a great core of Scott, Myles, Thaiday, Parker, JT, Slater, Inglis, Boyd and Smith. We have had players come in like Guerra, taylor, mcqueen, gillett, chambers etc with only a few of them doing anything to warrant selection again. However, because we kept winning the selectors kept picking the same team, never picking new players unless forced to because of injury / suspension. Players like Gillett, Taylor and McQueen would have been dropped had we lost, yet because we win it never happened.

Now, we are looking at trying to win back the shield, but it seems like we are going to do the same thing, pick the same team unless forced into change. If we are speaking realistically, Segeyaro wont be picked. They will stick with DCE on the bench, which is stupid. Gillett will be picked despite his form not warranting it. I am worried Papalii and Mcqueen will also somehow make their way into the team over players like Napa and Cooper.

Winning is great, but unless you are continually trying to improve while you win, you will get to a point where u are left with a team of "winners" that can no longer win. I am very worried that we will see the same team as last year where possible and those guys that were carried (such as Gillett) will get another free shot.

 

[Ari Gold]

Whilst I don't share your disdain for Gillett I agree with your sentiment. DCE has experience now, he can wait til he is a starter and Segs would help us a lot.

Papalii looks so fat and lazy this year. I don't want him or McQueen near origin. If any Souths forward is coming into camp it should be Grevsmuhl. But I agree with Napa. Less so on Cooper.

 

[Morkel]

It's very likely I'm just missing the point here, but can anyone interpret this from Mal so it makes sense?

“Because of the crackdown on wrestling, the speed of the play the ball has increased and this has made the role of the prop forward even more important.“What the first few rounds of the competition showed us is that the halves really need that extra fraction of a second of decision time that comes with good forward momentum."

For mine, with the faster ruck speeds, the halves in general should already have that extra fraction of a second. Which is why you're seeing Super-League Specials like Blake Austin looking so sharp. I may be mistaken, but I recall [MENTION=7802]broncos4life[/MENTION] saying a couple of years ago that opening up the ruck is just going to make lesser halves look better, while the absolute cream like Thurston will somewhat be disadvantaged (in comparison to other halves) because his performances come down to him being able to make the right decisions in a split-second. That was a pearler of a comment, which is why I may be mistaken thinking it was B4L...

The only advantage of bigger bodies I can see is they may be able to halt momentum better or hold up the play longer, denying your opposite halves time (by allowing your defence to set quicker or not have to go as far back). But there would also be a trade-off in that they will tire quickly.

I just don't get his reasoning.

 

[Unbreakable]

Pretty sure Guerra will be fine, he said he was hoping to return to action in the next week or two on the footy show last week.

 

[Cult]

Segeyaro hasn't been playing as well as everyone hypes him up.

 

[Big Pete]

No he isn't but at the same time he's better than the other options.