Are We the Only NRL Team Resting Our State of Origin Players?
I am certainly not a coach, and I have complete faith in the decisions made by IC and the coaching staff. However, as a supporter, it is disappointing not to see some of our players backing up after State of Origin.
After Wednesday night’s performance, which by most accounts was not at the level many would have expected, I would have thought a number of the players might have welcomed the opportunity to get back on the field, build some momentum, and iron out a few of the issues that emerged during the match. That said, the coaching staff may have taken the decision out of the players’ hands in the interests of managing workloads and ensuring they remain fresh for the long season ahead.
This is not just another regular-season fixture; it is a genuine top of the table clash between two premiership contenders. For that reason, it feels like a match where every available player should be on deck. The competition is incredibly tight, and every competition point matters.
While there are undoubtedly sound reasons behind the decision, it is difficult not to spare a thought for the supporters. Fans invest significant time and hard earned money to attend games, often with the expectation of watching the club’s biggest stars in action. Seeing those players sitting in the grandstand rather than on the field can be extremely frustrating.
Any team who takes the warriors lightly will pay the price.
They exposed a couple of weaknesses of ours, but even without Cleary and Yeo the cream rose to the top.
Dylan stood up and then some, at critical stages he took control over the team including at a critical point virtually inserting himself In the half back role in attack.
Felt so sorry for Paul with that unfortunate slip, will make the highlight reel for sure.
Cassie played at another level tonight, and I thought both Billys played well. Our debutant hooker looked just as good in first grade as he has been in the lower grades.
All in all a 2 point win was what both teams deserved, a thoroughly good game. Not the usual polished Penrith attack, but while missing Clearys boot, it was anything but clunky
I said this in the other thread. As a Queenslander, I’m selfishly glad Laurie never picked Edwards. My gosh he played well.
Was a good quality game. Quietly had confidence that the system would prevail. Cogger is no slouch, Tago is more than a decent ‘fill-in’ for To’o and with Edwards stepping up even more, the Lock position is covered.
I’m with Edwards on the fwd pass call. Thought it was fine live and not convinced otherwise on the replays. The amount of genuinely fwd passes that don’t get called for that, what I thought was flat at worse, pass… gah. I don’t think either ref was even in the frame. I was quietly fuming watching the back-to-back sets on our tryline after that. Thankfully it didn’t influence the game.
Isaah Papali’i deserves significant praise. He has been one of our most consistent forwards throughout the year. He consistently brings energy, aggression and reliability every week.
That win bodes well for the rest of the season, a couple of callouts.
Cogger showed his replacement value, though he was under pressure early with kick pressure, not great results but he adapted well. His efforts in defense also made a huge impact.
Lussick being replaced, was he injured? I did note how often he had his arms in the air at the ref, I don’t think IC likes that, maybe he got dragged. He did seem a bit off his usual game.
Kudos to Tago, his game was a really good one, you would see soooo many players kicking stones for being left out early, but to his credit, he has held his attitude for the betterment of the team.
I thought our forwards played really well as a unit whereby I thought the warriors were a bit ‘one out’ and it was a massive difference at the end of the game.
Tago has again shown his value this season. Either as a centre replacement or as an impact player off the bench. Players are often not given credit for the impact they can have off the bench.
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Match
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Time
Tickets
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Broadcast
Kayo Sports [LIVE] 
NRL Live Pass [LIVE]
ABC Sydney 702AM [LIVE] 
Sunday 31/5 1:00pm
Promoted/Relegated | 
Positional Change
Teams and Match Officials have been updated.
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