Two brutal axings needed to dig Maroons out of 'awful trouble'

Queensland have to roll the dice and gamble on a fiery redhead from Canberra to change the trend of State of Origin in game two. New South Wales were only average for much of the 80 minutes but always looked like winning and the Maroons have now lost two straight games at Suncorp Stadium for the first time since 1998 and four of their last five clashes with the Blues. The Maroons need more aggression up front and Canberra's wild child Corey Horsburgh has that in bucketloads. Yes, he can lose his cool on the big stage but the Blues were happy he wasn't picked for game one and will be delighted if the Maroons persist with their 'pick and stick' mentality. The other big call Billy Slater may want to consider is dropping the struggling Kayln Ponga and moving the dangerous Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to fullback. 'The Hammer' is the most elusive ball-runner in the game but was starved of the ball with any time or space on Wednesday night. Ponga has been a shadow of his best this season at club level and many put that down to Newcastle's spluttering attack. But in elite company, Ponga again looked flat and barely troubled the Blues defence. Skipper Daly Cherry-Evans was another big-name Maroon who failed to fire and the oldest man in Origin footy may have played one series too many. The Maroons are in awful trouble having lost game one at home - and only wholesale changes can give them a chance to turn things around.

Maroons' huge Billy coup as Origin future confirmed

Queensland legend Billy Slater has agreed to coach the Maroons for at least another three years.The rugby league icon took his time coming to a decision on his coaching future, but has put pen to paper to do the State of Origin job until the end of the 2026 series, he confirmed with Wide World of Sports.Slater, 40, took the reins in 2022 and has won the shield in both Origin series he's coached to date.

DCE retirement theory explains Manly buys

Phil Gould has applauded Luke Brooks for putting himself first and switching to Manly, as the Canterbury Bulldogs supremo predicts the future of Daly Cherry-Evans may change soon.At 34, Cherry-Evans is in the twilight of his career, but is playing some of his best football after leading Queensland to another State of Origin series victory.The Manly halfback will attempt to rescue his side's season when his duties with the Maroons end, with the Sea Eagles currently 13th on the ladder.The club's signing of Luke Brooks on a four-year-deal seemingly offers them a replacement when Cherry-Evans retires, and Gould believes that won't be too far off. "I can't see Cherry-Evans going much beyond next year, if he plays next year," he said on Wide World of Sports' Six Tackles with Gus podcast."I'm not saying I have any information on that, he's going terrific but you don't have to go until you're absolutely burned out before you retire."He's right on top of his game at the moment but he's 34 years of age."Gould went on to state the shrewd business from Manly has given them plenty of cover in a market where the halfback stocks are depleted or overpriced."The insurance for Brooks by staying for four years (is good business), he'll be 32 when he comes off this contract, which a lot of our top halfbacks are at least that, and more, at the moment," he said."You go out and try and buy one ... they're hard to come by and they're extremely expensive."I think it's a great buy and I think he'll do a great job and I'm very, very happy for Luke Brooks and I think the best part of his career is in front of him."Brooks' signature with Manly ends his long association with the Tigers, having debuted at the club in 2013.

Maroons rocked by star's sudden retirement

Queensland enforcer Josh Papalii has retired from State of Origin on the eve of the 2023 series.The Raiders front-rower follows in the footsteps of his club teammate Jack Wighton, who retired from Blues selection recently.Papalii, 31, played 23 Origin games for the Maroons."I've loved every minute of my time playing for Queensland and representing the state and I have memories from my time in maroon I will never forget," Papalii said."For me, it's about giving the next generation of Queensland players the chance to represent and it also allows me to concentrate on my football for the Raiders during the middle part of the season."I want to thank all of the coaches over the years that have given me the opportunity to play for Queensland and all of the players who I have taken the field with."While New South Wales coach Brad Fittler said he had been aware of Wighton's decision for some time, it's unclear if Queensland coach Billy Slater knew about Papalii.Slater and his selectors will unveil their squad on Monday for game one, which is in Adelaide on Wednesday week."Josh's decision to retire from State of Origin showcases Josh's character and his selflessness for his state," Canberra coach Ricky Stuart said."Playing one State of Origin match is a huge achievement, but to play over 20 Origin matches over a decade makes Josh one of the most experienced and decorated players in Origin history."His efforts for Queensland playing in the toughest arena in the toughest position will forever be remembered and Josh will go down as one of Origin's greatest players."Papalii's Raiders teammate Corey Horsburgh is a chance of an Origin debut and the retirement will no doubt bump him up the Queensland pecking order.

Maroons' main culprits in second half surrender

Queensland coach Billy Slater has 56 massive headaches leading into the State of Origin decider at Suncorp Stadium.That's the number of tackles the Maroons missed in the 44-12 humiliation by the Blues in Perth on Sunday night - the most by a Queensland team for many years.The Maroons were in the game at halftime but the famed Queensland defensive wall crumbled in the second half as the Blues ran in five unanswered tries - several with ridiculous ease.When the Blues lost game one by just a handful of points, coach Brad Fittler reacted savagely, making a host of changes.But with a smaller talent pool to pick from, Slater doesn't have that luxury and will be unlikely to fine tune his team to any great extent.The biggest worry he faces is the defence out wide, where the Blues ran amok in the second stanza.Centres Dane Gagai and Val Holmes missed a massive 12 tackles between them - and will face another examination of their credentials at Suncorp where the Blues are certain to target them.Kayln Ponga at fullback made two tackles and missed three - most of which led to tries.Blues halves Jarome Luai and man-of-the-match Nathan Cleary waltzed in for three soft solo tries between them - tries we don't often see in Origin football.

Origin great Slater wins race to coach Maroons

State of Origin great Billy Slater has won the race to coach Queensland from 2022, with confirmation he'll take charge for the next two years.Slater replaces Paul Green in the role, after the former Cowboys premiership coach told the QRL he was keen to pursue a return to club coaching, opting not to take up an option that would have given him a second year at the helm of the Maroons.Green's Maroons lost 2-1 to NSW this year in a campaign that was at times considered a disaster.They had lost the series by the end of Game Two on the back of two demoralising scorelines.Slater, now 38, played 31 Origin games for Queensland and was an integral part of the Maroons dominance from 2006 onwards."I feel very honoured to have this role put in front of me," Slater told TODAY.