Nashy
Immortal
Senior Staff
- Mar 5, 2008
- 52,284
- 31,730
THE Johnathan Thurston judiciary circus, and the arrogance and hypocrisy from NSW is why State of Origin will never, lose its passion in Queensland.
This sort of behaviour has been coming from south of the border since 1908, and is why your dad, grandad and uncles still see red when they see the Blues.
They try to get away with murder, and when Queenslanders refuse to roll over and cop it sweet, they label us sooks, and sulks.
And when Queensland still comes out on top against the odds, they're ready with an arsenal of excuses that they throw like confetti and claims of being victimised.
Sure, it's been a long time since NSW won an Origin series and an unprecedented era of dominance means that the loathing of our southern cousins may subside.
Some people may find to hard to remember why the Blues were worthy of our frustration.
But the way the southern spivs have carried on in the past week over Johnathan Thurston's appearance at the NRL judiciary has only served to remind us why former Queensland coach Barry Muir referred to the Blues as ``cockroaches''.
It started when the NRL's match review committee cited Thurston for accidentally making contact with referee Matt Cecchin last Saturday. Cecchin laughed it off and said himself the contact was accidental.
It didn't stop the all-Blue review panel from charging JT with an offence that would have him rubbed out of the Origin decider on July 6.
The southern press went into overdrive.
``RUB HIM OUT'' blasted one headline.
``We need justice for referees'' declared another with a mocked up picture of Thurston holding an identification card like a prisoner.
It was a circus. It should have never got that far. Some hailed the decision as a win for rugby league. The whole affair just showcased how desperate NSW is to wrestle back the Origin crown off Queensland.
Even Queensland's maverick Federal MP Bob Katter felt compelled to raise the issue in parliament down in Canberra. People in the streets from Coolangatta to Cape York were left shaking their heads just like Bob in that giant hat of his.
But sanity prevailed and Thurston was cleared.
It did not stop the vitriol from south of the Tweed.
The patronising, condescending dismissal of Queensland's fears over a potential ban for the Maroons halfback was just as infuriating.
``Thurston cleared but Blue justice awaits'' one front page headline said.
``Queenslanders now have no excuses'' it went on to say.
Please. If Thurston did get rubbed out, we'd bring in Cooper Cronk. If the Blues knee-capped him, we'd call on Scott Prince. Give us your best shot.
TV and radio reports as well as newspaper headlines said the decision from the all-Blue judiciary panel had proved all of us conspiracy theorists wrong. They mocked Queenslanders for going bat for one of our own.
But excuse me.
It is not a conspiracy theory when everything points to an old-fashioned stitch-up.
You are only paranoid if you think people are out to get you. If they are actually out to get you, that's not paranoia. It's a stitch-up.
The Thurston case was not a conspiracy theory given how hard the NRL prosecutor James McLeod went at Thurston during the hearing.
They did their best attempt at a KGB back-alley whack job, but when Queensland dodged the bullet, they hid the smoking guns behind their backs and accuse us of paranoia.
They tried. They failed.
A bit like the last five Origin series really.
Bring on July 6.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl ... 6080521263
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