The Fittler gamble paid dividends…… and then some

Brad Fittler made seven changes to the Game I team that lost by four points, and with a 38-6 victory in Game II, he should receive the plaudits for his bravery in wielding the axe to select a team that embarrassed the Maroons on Sunday night in Perth.

I personally believed he had been too rash in his decision making, he ousted players that I thought didn’t deserve to be discarded and it all seemed a bit over the top considering the four-point deficit from the loss.

However, considering the dominant manner in which they beat the Maroons, in effort and intensity, it justified the bold move silenced the vast majority of people that thought he was cracking under the pressure, myself included.

From the first 10 minutes of the game, I had a feeling Queensland was going to struggle, as the Blues were rolling up the field a lot easier and winning the field position battle from the opening few sets. I could see the Maroons were struggling to handle the Blues' middle forwards, and they looked very flustered in defence trying to slow the NSW players down in the ruck.

It was a similar way to how the Blues started Game I, where I had similar fears for the Queensland side. Yet they didn’t sustain that intensity and dominance and allowed the Maroons back in, no such worries in Perth, as the Blues never looked like taking their foot off the gas.

The big name changes were showing why Fittler had stuck his neck out on the line for them, Blake Ferguson was doing what he does best, charging into the defence and getting his team out of trouble. Tom Trobjevic, what a player, stick him anywhere in the backline and he excels, he’s just a terrific football player and caused the Queensland defence all sorts of trouble, linking up fantastically with the dynamite James Tedesco at fullback.

Jack Wighton, the Latrell Mitchell replacement, looked very strong in the centres. His main job was to ensure his defence was good and he did, but he also brought a lot with the ball to the Blues' side, he’s a big body who’s hard to handle and he moves across the ground extremely well. I believe he could make an extremely good representative centre for the foreseeable future, similar to the way Josh Dugan/Jarrad Hayne played a lot of centre at rep level and stood out.

Dale Finucane was shifted to lock to start the game and justified his long-awaited shot at Origin with a tough, uncompromising, typical Dale Finucane performance. It also allowed Fittler to shift deserved man of the match and workhorse Jake Trobjevic into the front row. I think this worked extremely well as it strengthened the NSW bench with Paul Vaughan providing a massive impact, something the Blues seriously lacked in Game I.

It was a fantastic Origin performance from Trobjevic, he played for 72 minutes and ran for an impressive 133 metres. However, it wasn’t this part of his game that impressed me so much, it was his link-up play with the halves that took so much pressure off them. He would go to the line with a 3’s play, and just keep that middle defence tight and then simply play out the back to his halves, he’s got beautiful hands for a big man and it’s an area you could tell the Maroons were lacking in as they don’t have a noted ball playing 13, it looked a lot clunkier when they ran the same play with McGuire.

Not to mention James Maloney, who was called back to the Origin arena as somewhat of a last man standing option. If his Game II performance is anything to go by, he will be first on the team sheet for the decider in Sydney.

 It’s not necessarily the things he does that make the difference with Maloney, it’s just the experience and know how of what to do in situations that allow this young Blues team to perform so well. There are so many subtleties in his game that just ensure the NSW team stick to the game plan and keep the pressure on Queensland. I dare say the series would’ve been won last night if Maloney had played in the opener.

In contrast to the Blues' dominance and intensity, the Queensland side looked a shadow of itself from Game I. They struggled to contain the Blues middle forwards and in my opinion, never really looked like they could penetrate the NSW defence. In fact, they didn’t technically even score a try, it was a dubious decision and quite lucky they got on the scoreboard.

The Queensland side struggled to get out of their end, and the play of the balls were so much slower than the NSW teams that their most dangerous attacking weapons - Munster and Ponga, never really got an opportunity to hurt the Blues. There never seemed to be any space for the Queensland team, it looked like they were playing on an under 8’s pitch with how organised the NSW team defended.

No longer were the outballs to Chambers working from DCE, or the dazzling footwork from Munster to slice open the Blues defence, they were stuck for answers the Queensland side and this time around they looked the team who didn’t have the combinations working.

It was a similar opening 20 minutes to Game I whereby the Blues dominated, but this time around Queensland didn’t have the bench to bring the impact and energy that they did in the first game.

In the opener, Napa and Ofahengue came on, along with Fifita and really turned the tide of the game with a lot of strong running and loads of intensity in defence. In that game, the bench lifted the Maroons, however in Game II, their bench didn’t bring what they needed it too and that just allowed the Blues to keep rolling up the pitch and dominating.

I think their forwards really need to aim up in the decider, if they don't, NSW win again and have all the running and dominate the field position, and this just isolates their strike players. There will be criticism on the playmakers for what was a lacklustre performance, but I question what impact they can have when their forwards are simply being dominated.

NSW seemed to start their sets on the 30/40 metre line whereas practically every set the Maroons were starting inside their 10 and getting rushed kicks out which the outstanding NSW back three of Tedesco, Ferguson and Addo-Carr were having a field day with the vast space available. Something you don’t want to give to three players who possess so much strength, speed and footwork.

The bench for the Blues was a key area where I think they really ensured victory. In Game I, when the changes were made the side looked a lot weaker, it was obvious the larger bench Queensland had on hand made a big difference. Fittler realised this and had a bench that included three big bodies who can all play in the middle, and kept in their best bench player in Cam Murray from Game I.

As I said earlier, they didn’t lose anything when their starting players came on, in fact, some may argue they gained. Vaughan and Murray were fantastic again and the utility of Wade Graham means you don’t need to carry a ‘number 14’, instead they have a big forward who can play anywhere on the park.

It makes for an extremely interesting Game III. The Blues have completely dominated the Maroons and it may force Walters to make changes, similar to what Fittler did for this game. I don’t believe that’s the answer, I think he needs to improve his bench however they need to match the Blues for intensity, something that couldn’t have been questioned after Game I.

In my honest opinion, however, if the Blues turn up and play to the best of their ability, the Queensland team can’t match them. For the past three years (including the 2017 series loss), they have had the better squad and have much more depth to choose from and the only way they lose matches is if they beat themselves.

It’s such a telling fact of how good the NSW team can be by the way they roll up the field so much more effectively and win the field position battle. If they ascertain this type of energy they will win Game III and go back to back for the first time since 2005.

Fittler's decision was bold and brash and caused a massive backlash from just about everyone.

Yet, with a completely dominant and emphatic victory over the Maroons, we must concede the Freddie played a masterstroke.