General State of Origin Discussion

[Dexter]

Taumalolo declared for NZ at the start of his career, which means he is ineligible for Australia and therefore Origin.

I think things have changed since he made that decision.
He couldn't declare for Tonga at that time.
He can now , however , Tonga is a tier 1 nation now so **** him.
SoO is and should always be a part of the selection process to represent Australia.
People like Gus can't wait to get all the polynesian players eligible because it would increase the NSW pool and we all know NSWRL is the only thing that matters.

 

[The True King]

Our long term spine is locked in .
Ponga
Munster
Walker
Grant.

= new dynasty.

Just quietly how good was the Ponga v Brimson H2H yesterday.

If Brimson had the same hype Ponga did when he started in NRL and didn't cop the injuries it would be a tighter call between the two for rep honours. Ponga naturally has more strings to his bow with gk'ing and creativity, but the rest is pretty close.

Provided he stays fit, I think we're going to start consistently seeing the best of Brimson now the Titans have a pack that can get on the front foot.

 

[Sproj]

Our long term spine is locked in .
Ponga
Munster
Walker
Grant.

= new dynasty.

Not a Bronco in sight.

 

[Dexter]

Just quietly how good was the Ponga v Brimson H2H yesterday.

If Brimson had the same hype Ponga did when he started in NRL and didn't cop the injuries it would be a tighter call between the two for rep honours. Ponga naturally has more strings to his bow with gk'ing and creativity, but the rest is pretty close.

Provided he stays fit, I think we're going to start consistently seeing the best of Brimson now the Titans have a pack that can get on the front foot.

Love AJ as a player, I think he is the standout 14. Can play 6 or 9 as well.
Only worry is Grant can play 80 mins so Qld will be potentially wasting a bench sssddsd spot.

 

[Foordy]

Andrew Abdo has said that there won't be any changes to Origin eligibility in the short or long term

quotes from Abdo:

"There is certainly no proposal to change the eligibility in the short term or in the long term for that matter but of course everything will be considered over time but at this stage no," Abdo said.

"I won’t talk about specific players around Origin eligibility but I would like to clarify something, the Commission is not looking at changing the eligibility for Origin.

"What we are looking at is standardizing and harmonising the calendar so players who do qualify to play for NSW and Queensland don’t have to choose between that and representing their country in a potential mid-season test.

"This is not about changing the definition of who qualifies for Origin this is about making sure those that do qualify and do want to play for Origin don’t have to choose.

"We are building towards a dedicated international window at the back end of the season that is good for everyone. It is good for fans, it’s good for State of Origin, it’s good for the international game and that’s really what we’re putting our efforts into."

 

[Sproj]

Andrew Abdo has said that there won't be any changes to Origin eligibility in the short or long term

quotes from Abdo:

"There is certainly no proposal to change the eligibility in the short term or in the long term for that matter but of course everything will be considered over time but at this stage no," Abdo said.

"I won’t talk about specific players around Origin eligibility but I would like to clarify something, the Commission is not looking at changing the eligibility for Origin.

"What we are looking at is standardizing and harmonising the calendar so players who do qualify to play for NSW and Queensland don’t have to choose between that and representing their country in a potential mid-season test.

"This is not about changing the definition of who qualifies for Origin this is about making sure those that do qualify and do want to play for Origin don’t have to choose.

"We are building towards a dedicated international window at the back end of the season that is good for everyone. It is good for fans, it’s good for State of Origin, it’s good for the international game and that’s really what we’re putting our efforts into."

But does Vlandys agree? Abdo has no power ultimately.

 

[DanG]

ive always felt this in my time watching origin in the last 17 years or so, that QLD just have this edge over NSW and it wasn't always talent, it was just pure passion and determination to win. wish the broncos could find that /:

 

[Sproj]

ive always felt this in my time watching origin in the last 17 years or so, that QLD just have this edge over NSW and it wasn't always talent, it was just pure passion and determination to win. wish the broncos could find that /:

We have too many non-Qlders to try it.

 

[Super Freak]

Common sense prevailed with the NRL blocking Taumalolo’s bid to play Origin.

He’s simply not eligible. The rules are too relaxed as it is.

 

[Super Freak]

If you're born in Qld or NSW you absolutely should be eligible.

He was. He was born in NSW and was eligible for Australia but he chose NZ. He played for the Junior Kiwis and then played for Tonga and then switched allegiance back to NZ.

I don’t see why he should now be eligible for Origin when he chose the path that made him ineligible.

 

[Dash]

He was. He was born in NSW and was eligible for Australia but he chose NZ. He played for the Junior Kiwis and then played for Tonga and then switched allegiance back to NZ.

I don’t see why he should now be eligible for Origin when he chose the path that made him ineligible.

Fair enough. I had no idea where he had played international football.

 

[Foordy]

Common sense prevailed with the NRL blocking Taumalolo’s bid to play Origin.

He’s simply not eligible. The rules are too relaxed as it is.

I just find it funny that the whole media narrative changed once Taumalolo said he wanted to play Origin.

It was originally reported that Freddy Fittler made the initial request to change the eligibility requirements ... now it is Taumalolo's bid

 

[Mustafur]

This whole Tier system is stupid, Tonga is still classed as a Tier 2 despite beating all 3 Tier 1 Teams and probably could beat Kiwis and England on quality right now.

Still think it's stupid that Origin eligibility is being used as a Kangaroos selection match, we want to build the international game as it's crucial to our sports long term success, when you have over 50% of the junior system in Australia being islander but they want to play for Tonga, Somoa, Fiji etc to help the international game, It's a good thing but they don't get paid for those games so letting them play Origin when at the end of the day they are still a NSW or QLD player as they came up through thise systems while living there their whole lives, it's hardly going to ruin the integrity of Origin.

 

[Morkel]

This whole Tier system is stupid, Tonga is still classed as a Tier 2 despite beating all 3 Tier 1 Teams and probably could beat Kiwis and England on quality right now.

Still think it's stupid that Origin eligibility is being used as a Kangaroos selection match, we want to build the international game as it's crucial to our sports long term success, when you have over 50% of the junior system in Australia being islander but they want to play for Tonga, Somoa, Fiji etc to help the international game, It's a good thing but they don't get paid for those games so letting them play Origin when at the end of the day they are still a NSW or QLD player as they came up through thise systems while living there their whole lives, it's hardly going to ruin the integrity of Origin.

I don't like the idea of them wanting to play Origin just because of the cash. They should play for free because they want to smash it up for their state.

 

[Mustafur]

I don't like the idea of them wanting to play Origin just because of the cash. They should play for free because they want to smash it up for their state.

Alot of the time they are making the selection before they even do First grade.

 

[ningnangnong]

I don't like the idea of them wanting to play Origin just because of the cash. They should play for free because they want to smash it up for their state.

Can you imagine - no sponsors for Origin, no cash bonus for players, tickets sold very cheap, etc. Basically take all the money out of it and make it about the desire to genuinely want your state to be the best. It'll never happen in a thousand years, but still, get all the mercenaries out.

 

[Super Freak]

Just bought tickets for Game 2 in Brisbane.

3rd row. Nice.

 

[Kimlo]

I don't like the idea of them wanting to play Origin just because of the cash. They should play for free because they want to smash it up for their state.

If Vlandys wants some genuine ideas to help the game, origin should be cut back from 30k a game to 5k a game and the money saved given to the international teams that are not the big 3 as player payments. I'll never respect Australia winning league matches when they basically have a huge financial incentive (I think about 150k if it's 3 origins and 3 Aus matches) to get players to choose origin over 3x PNG matches where they scrape in 5k total. That's not being the best, that's buying the best.