Kalyn Ponga absolutely deserved to be sent off.
And the fact he now escapes with nothing more than a fine and not a suspension is the real issue we should be arguing today.
Instead of blaming Ashley Klein for supposedly ruining Queensland’s hopes on Wednesday night, how about we give the referee some credit for having the courage to make such a tough call on the game’s biggest stage.
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Meanwhile, Ethan Strange announced himself as NSW’s long-term five-eighth regardless of whether Mitchell Moses is available for the next game.
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Nathan Cleary also went a giant step towards ending the debate about him not owning the big Origin moments.
And while James Tedesco saved the day for the Blues, he also saved his own bacon.
Because let’s face it, if Teddy didn’t come up with that match-winning moment, there would been a huge push to bring back Dylan Edwards for game two.
Laurie Daley also can’t escape the blowtorch despite NSW’s come-from-behind win after another dreadful start that bordered on embarrassing.
The Blues coach also has some other massive decisions to make on the selection front because he must find room in the starting team for Cameron Murray and probably Casey McLean, and don’t forget Payne Haas should be available for game two.
There is a lot to unpack in the aftermath of NSW’s 22-20 win, so let’s get stuck into it.
DON’T BLAME KLEIN FOR PONGA’S SEND-OFF
I can’t believe the outrage over Klein’s courageous decision.
It was Ponga who got it wrong.
Not the referee.
Ponga hit Tolu Koula in the head with a reckless shot that not only ruled the Manly centre out of the match but will now sideline Koula for the next two club games as well.
Yet somehow Ponga is free to line up for Newcastle because Origin operates under different judiciary rules to club football.
Fair dinkum, how does that make any sense?
If the exact same incident happened in a regular NRL game, Ponga would have been staring at a two-match suspension.
Instead, he cops a 23 per cent fine of his match payment and walks away.
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Origin Erupts after Ponga SEND OFF!! | 00:31
The other ridiculous part of the fallout is the attempt to paint Klein as the villain.
All he did was enforce the standards the game claims it wants around head contact.
If anything, Klein showed more backbone than those who want to criticise him after the event.
I understand that there was a debate going on between Klein and the bunker official Chris Butler before the decision was made.
But ultimately Klein got it right.
Ponga had ample time to adjust for that tackle.
But he chose not to.
Instead, he launched at Koula without wrapping his arms and made direct contact with the head.
Yes, it was head on head, and perhaps Ponga also clipped Koula with his shoulder.
But regardless of whether it was intentional or not is irrelevant because reckless is still reckless.
It was no different when Joseph Suaalii was marched for taking out Reece Walsh a few years back.
Or when Latrell Mitchell copped six weeks and missed a grand final for his hit on Joey Manu.
There are mitigating circumstances in all these tackles.
So why should this be treated any differently?
I’m damn sure that if it was Nathan Cleary who had been flattened instead of Koula, people wouldn’t be complaining like they are today.
CLEARY ANSWERS HIS CRITICS
Let’s be clear here. It was by no means the masterclass by Cleary some are making it out to be.
But it was still one of the most important performances of Cleary’s Origin career given the pressure he was under going into this game without Moses to share the game management responsibilities.
The Blues were also under enormous pressure from the opening exchanges yet Cleary for the best part stayed composed.
His clever no-look grubber for Hudson Young’s first-half try was top shelf, while his long kicking game was more than sound.
And when the game was hanging in the balance late, Cleary well and truly stepped up.
That 40/20 in the 70th minute completely changed the momentum of the match.
Moments later he backed up to score off Blake Brailey.
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Cleary HEROICS sparks Blues comeback | 00:32
Then came the pinpoint bomb for Tedesco.
And finally the conversion to ice the game.
While it wasn’t exactly what you’d call a tough shot, you could actually see the nerves in him as Cleary lined up the kick.
For once, it looked like the pressure was visibly getting to him.
But the way he then stepped back and composed himself before nailing the match-winning goal just again highlighted his incredible mental strength.
Does that completely end the debate around Cleary’s Origin career?
Not yet it doesn’t.
He still has to close out the series.
But this was still a huge step forward.
STRANGE MUST STAY AS NSW NO.6
Having said that, I would still argue that young Ethan Strange deserved the man-of-the-match honours because he was without question NSW’s most dangerous player.
Thrown into the starting side at the last minute after Moses’ injury, Strange played without any delf-doubt or self-preservation.
He ran hard.
He tackled hard.
And he constantly backed himself in what was a debut for the ages.
But now it leaves Laurie Daley facing a massive decision because there is no way Strange should lose the five-eighth position even if Moses is fit for game two.
While I’ve heard some suggest Strange could move to the centres to make way for Moses in the No 6 jumper, I think the better option would be to put Moses on the bench as the perfect cover for the halves.
There is absolutely no doubt Strange is going to be around this NSW team for years to come.
So why change it?
Let Strange stay at five-eighth and use Moses as the bench utility ahead of Matt Burton.
Should Ethan Strange keep his spot?Source: News Corp Australia
QUEENSLAND’S NEW ALF HAS ARRIVED
Queensland will face a similar dilemma with Sam Walker if Tom Dearden is fit to play at any point this series.
Because Walker was equally outstanding on debut.
There were huge concerns leading into the game about whether his defence would hold up.
Instead, it never became a talking point because Walker’s attack stole the spotlight.
It was dead-set like watching Allan Langer in his prime.
His grubber for Robert Toia’s try, while his quick hands for Tom Flegler’s try just oozed composure amid the chaos.
And I thought his general kicking game throughout the match was really good, while he combined brilliantly with Cameron Munster.
Even though Dearden was the player of the series last year, Walker has made himself impossible to drop.
I’d keep Walker in the side and use Dearden as the utility if he returns.
Slater proud of defeated Maroons | 08:34
TEDDY SAVES THE DAY, BUT NOT BEFORE SOME NERVOUS MOMENTS
If Tedesco didn’t come up with the match-winning play with that desperate effort to beat Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to Cleary’s bomb, the storyline today would have been entirely different.
Because there would have been enormous pressure to recall Dylan Edwards for game two.
There’s no question that Teddy and Cleary looked disconnected at times.
And Queensland also exposed him positionally on a couple of occasions.
There was also the butchered try when the Blues had a three-on-one overlap and Tedesco threw a shocker of a pass at Haumole Olakau’atu’s toes.
That could have been disastrous for the Blues.
But ultimately, that winning try means that he is now in no danger of losing his spot.
Not that it means there is still not a lot of work to do to get ready for game two.
Tedesco: “Pretty surreal to be honest” | 04:39
WHY DALEY CAN’T ESCAPE BLOWTORCH DESPITE WIN
The other major problem NSW can’t hide from is their lack of energy and aggression to start the game.
Seriously, how many more times are the Blues going to come out looking as flat as pancakes after having 10 days under Laurie Daley to get up for rugby league’s toughest contest?
There is obviously something going wrong with their preparation _ and on that front the buck has to stop with the coach.
Because it wasn’t just a stack of fundamental errors that let NSW down.
It was also the way Queensland came out breathing fire, while the Blues looked absolutely shellshocked with and without the ball.
They had no punch in the middle, while their defence was nowhere near what you expect in the opening exchanges of any Origin game.
And don’t forget NSW had the same issue last year when Queensland led 26-6 at halftime in game two and 20-0 in game three.
This time NSW trailed 20-6 again before the Ponga send-off completely changed the context of the game.
Without Ponga’s tackle on Koula, Daley would be getting roasted today.
Loz credits Cleary for Greatest comeback | 12:59
OTHER CHANGES BLUES MUST MAKE
Daley also faces some huge selection calls heading into game two.
Payne Haas obviously comes straight back into the starting side if fit.
But surely Cameron Murray also has to start at lock.
The energy he and Victor Radley brought off the bench was obvious for all to see.
I’d start Murray and move Isaah Yeo up to prop.
Mitchell Barnett probably pushes back to the bench and then there’s a choice between keeping Addin Fonua-Blake or Jacob Saifiti, who didn’t get on the field.
Then there’s Casey McLean who was also enormous off the bench.
Whether it is at left centre or on the wing, McLean showed enough to make a serious play for a starting spot in game two.
While Stephen Crichton had some big moments late, his costly errors cannot just be brushed off because NSW escaped with the win.