5 NSW players who could lose their Origin jersey

With Origin I now under two months away and some players having had better starts to the year than others, we have decided to have a look at which players are in danger of missing out on selection for Origin I. With the reasons ranging from injury to suspension, to just plain bad form.

Jack de Belin

If I was a betting man, I would put my house on Jack de Belin missing out on selection for Origin I.

After being charged with aggravated sexual assault and the NRL's subsequent decision to stand de Belin down on their new no-fault stand down policy, the St George Illawarra lock's hopes of retaining his Blues jersey were all but dashed.

Even if he were to be victorious in challenging the legality of the NRL's new policy over the coming weeks in court, it would be extremely tough to build up a base of match fitness and a portfolio demanding his selection in the team in such a limited time frame prior to Origin I.

And with fellow middle forwards Jake Trbojevic and Tevita Pangai Junior having had explosive starts to the season, de Belin would be hard pressed retaining his position even if he was free of the scandal he finds himself in.

Tom Trbojevic

This one particularly hurts for NSW fans. After a brilliant 2018 in which he cemented himself as one of the game's premier outside backs on both the Origin and international stage, the younger Trbojevic brother was set to once again take the competition by storm in 2019.

After missing rounds one and two due to a hamstring issue, Turbo made a dynamic return to the Sea Eagles' number one jersey against the Warriors, inspiring his team to a win with an incredible two try, and two try-assist performance.

However, sadly for Manly and NSW fans, Trbojevic would once again tweak his hamstring only 40 minutes into his second game back, tearing it badly in an innocuous kick return.

Trbojevic has been informed by the Sea Eagles' physiotherapy team that he could miss between six to nine weeks of NRL, and with the team being picked in a month and a half the Mona Vale junior is in a race against the clock.

Blues coach Brad Fittler told The Sunday Footy Show that he was prepared to give his winger as much time as possible in order to regain his spot on the flank, "It’s 59 days until Origin, 49 days until you pick the team... That gives him about eight weeks. You could see by the way he played against the Warriors — he would have been picked on that performance.”

James Roberts

Similarly to his right edge partner Trbojevic, James Roberts has had a slow start to 2019. This is thanks to a combination of injuries, form and off-field incidents, not exactly what you need when you are trying to retain an Origin jersey.

After playing only 65 minutes combined between rounds one and two respectively, Roberts went on to feature for the entire game during Brisbane's one-point loss to St George Illawarra.

Since then he has been sidelined indefinitely with another reoccurrence of a persistent Achilles tendon issue, as well as having been photographed being carried out of a Brisbane nightspot following a few too many beers. Not a good look for someone who is trying to recover from an injury.

Even when he is on the field, Roberts isn't having his usual influence on the game. Registering zero try assists and averaging a lowly 84 running metres per game, a substantial drop on the 107 running metres per game he has averaged since joining Brisbane.

With fellow centres Euan Aitken, Latrell Mitchell, Joseph Leilua and Curtis Scott having all made fast starts to the year, Roberts ought to sort himself out sooner rather than later.

James Maloney

Following a slow start to the year that has seen Penrith scrape two dodgy wins out of five, James Maloney's grip on the NSW number six jersey is slowly slipping.

Maloney's form to start the year has been less than impressive, recording zero try assists as well as missing an immense 13 tackles in Penrith's last start loss to the Titans. With this in mind, it's looking more likely than ever that the Blues could be without their linchpin Maloney for the first time in a while going into Origin I.

With the likes of Cody Walker and Luke Keary having started the year in red hot form, Maloney is going to have to pull something special out of the hat to ensure he gets selected for Origin I.

However, this looks like a distant prospect, with Origin coach Brad Fittler having slatted Maloney's partnership with fellow Blue Nathan Cleary, telling NRL on Nine that “I don’t think they’ve actually ever been a great combination... “Even during Origin. I think they played their role but I don’t think they were a great combination."

While his Penrith and NSW halves partner Nathan Cleary similarly hasn't had a flash start to the year, he has age on his side, as opposed to the 32-year-old Maloney.

Tyrone Peachey

Much like his Gold Coast Titans who sit at a measly one win from five games to start 2019, Blues utility Tyrone Peachey has had a slow start to the year.

Being employed primarily as a centre under Garth Brennan, Peachey has had an inconsistent start out wide in both attack and defence. Peachey has recorded only two try assists and zero tries from the first five rounds, as well as averaging 93.3 running metres per game, well down on the 114 he averaged last year at the Panthers. Peachey has also averaged a measly 75% tackle efficiency on the flank for the Titans, which sits on the lower end of the bell curb.

Following his transition from the foot of the mountains to the glitter strip, Peachey looks to have lost a yard of pace and some fitness, which doesn't allow him to have the explosive game-changing impact that he regularly did for the Panthers.

While he is well and truly under pressure, Peachey's utility value will go a long way to ensuring he gets picked as the Blues bench utility for Origin I again. With his main rival for the utility role Jack Bird having also had a slow start to the Season in Queensland, Peachey is not as under much pressure as his aforementioned teammates.