NSW great Paul Gallen has lashed Queensland for a move away from its traditional “pick and stick” selection mantra for the State of Origin series opener.
Maroons coach Billy Slater made headlines by leaving out the likes of Kalyn Ponga and Dane Gagai, with seven changes in total made from the squad that won last year’s series.
Gallen said he was left in disbelief when he saw the Queensland squad without the aforementioned stars, particularly Gagai, who has been a thorn in the Blues’ side for years.
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“Queensland, they say this all the time, ‘You don’t understand Origin, you’ve got no idea, we pick and stick’, (they’ve made) seven changes from last year’s winning series,” he told 2GB’s Wide World of Sports Radio.
“Queensland, go and pick your nose, seriously. It made me laugh so hard when they left those blokes out, Kurt Capewell, Dane Gagai, Kalyn Ponga, I could not believe it.
“There’s only one thing left to do New South Wales, go and get the job done.
“Get it done in game one and then we’ll see Queensland crawl back to their old ways to start plucking guys out of reserve grade, who knows.”
Slater’s decision on his fullback — Ponga or Broncos star Reece Walsh — was one of the more anticipated calls before the two states’ squads were revealed.
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The former Storm star said the Queensland brains trust had factored in a duty of care to Ponga when leaving him out after the Knights star spent a large chunk of the first half of the season on the sidelines due to concussion problems.
“It is the right decision for the team and Reece Walsh has been playing fantastic football,” Slater said.
“I have watched him closer than most people and he is in a really good place.”
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