State of Origin: Slater names four QLD debutants for Game I

Rookie head coach Billy Slater is set to blood a quartet of debutants in Sydney for Game I of the 2022 State of Origin series, including Selwyn Cobbo, Reuben Cotter, Patty Carrigan and Jeremiah Nanai, in his side’s bid to reclaim the Origin Shield.

Each of the four have enjoyed seemingly meteoric rises at clubland and have been rewarded with debut Maroon jumpers; Cobbo is expected to play on the right wing outside Dane Gagai, Cotter at starting lock, and Carrigan and Nanai off the bench, whilst Tom Dearden and Murray Taulagi have also been named in the extended squad.

Cobbo hails from Cherbourg, a rural Indigenous community in southeast Queensland, and attended Murgon State High School. The 19-year-old made his debut for the Broncos last season and has appeared in 19 first-grade games, scoring 12 tries. He is currently third in the NRL in total tackle breaks, fourth in line breaks, and one of just eight players to have scored double-digit tries.

Cotter was born in Mackay and played his junior football in Sarina before joining the North Queensland Cowboys academy. The 23-year-old made his NRL debut for North Queensland midway through 2019 and has made 31 appearances for them. This season, he is averaging 13 carries per contest for 115 metres in 61 minutes per game and is 13th in the NRL in average tackles.

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Carrigan hails from Brisbane and played his junior football for the Easts Tigers before skippering the union side at St. Joseph’s College, Gregory Terrace. He debuted for the Broncos in early-2019 and quickly made an impression, being made captain in just his second season in the top-grade. Carrigan has been superb for a revitalised Brisbane outfit this season; fresh off an ACL tear, Carrigan is third among all forwards in average runs and ninth in average run metres, all whilst making 28 tackles per contest.

Nanai was born in Auckland and raised in Cairns, where he played his juniors with the Cairns Kangaroos, before moving to Townsville in 2019 and attending Kirwan State High School. He made his NRL debut for the Cowboys last season and has made 16 appearances since. This season, he has scored five more tries than any other forward and is averaging nine carries for 78 run metres as an 80-minute edge forward.

The Maroons will be led by veterans Daly Cherry-Evans, Josh Papali’i, Dane Gagai and Ben Hunt, whilst Cameron Munster, Kalyn Ponga, and Harry Grant offer a tonne of spark in the spine. Hunt will start at hooker and likely bare the brunt of the opening stages before Grant is substituted on to attack a fatiguing NSW middle. Titans duo David Fifita and Moeaki Fotuaika will not play any part in Game I, whilst Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Jai Arrow, and Thomas Flegler have been pushed back onto the extended bench. Lindsay Collins will make his return to the Origin arena after missing last year’s series with a torn ACL.

Queensland will be desperate to avenge last year’s 44-point Game I loss and will fancy their new and improved squad to get the job done, whilst NSW will be eager to shake the confidence of Queensland’s fresh faces in front of what is projected to be a crowd of 82,000-plus at Accor Stadium in Homebush next Wednesday night.

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QLD Squad:

1. Kalyn Ponga
2. Selwyn Cobbo
3. Valentine Holmes
4. Dane Gagai
5. Xavier Coates
6. Cameron Munster
7. Daly Cherry-Evans (c)
8. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui
9. Ben Hunt
10. Josh Papali’i
11. Kurt Capewell
12. Felise Kaufusi
13. Reuben Cotter
14. Harry Grant
15. Lindsay Collins
16. Patty Carrigan
17. Jeremiah Nanai
18. Tom Dearden
19. Jai Arrow
20. Thomas Flegler
21. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow
22. Murray Taulagi

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