NRL State of Origin, Game 1
Queensland Maroons vs. NSW Blues
Head-To-Head
The first game of the 2023 NRL State of Origin kicks off Wednesday night, with the market expecting NSW to bounce back from last year’s Game 3 loss when the two sides meet at the Adelaide Oval.
After going down in a 2-1 epic to Billy Slater’s Maroons team last year, the Blues are currently trading at $1.80 with Bet Nation.
Brad Fittler will welcome the return of Tom Trbojevic and Josh Addo-Carr after both missed the 2022 series, while the Raiders’ Hudson Young, Bulldog Tevita Pangai Junior and the Sharks’ Nicho Hynes are set to debut.
Nathan Cleary and James Tedesco will once again steer the ship for the Blues. The question mark hanging over Dally M leader, Payne Haas, has been put to bed after rolling his ankle at training on Friday, but he is expected to be fully fit come game time. Haas has been a titan at prop for the Broncos and leads the Dally M with 30 votes ahead of Cleary (27).
The news of Mitchell’s calf injury will concern Blues fans, but in-form Panther Stephen Crichton will replace him, while Matt Burton comes in as the 18th man.
Led by Daly Cherry-Evans in his 20th Origin match, Queensland will blood four debutantes, including star Broncos teammates Reece Walsh and Selwyn Cobbo, Patrick Carrigan and Thomas Flegler.
Storm skipper, Christian Welch and Titans’ machine David Fifita are back in the squad after missing last year’s series. With Valentine Holmes and Cameron Munster, their leadership will be crucial to keeping their team disciplined in the heat of battle.
It’s going to be a battle of the big names from NSW against the discipline of Billy Slater’s Maroons. While a few of the stars from NSW haven’t been dominating at League level, having Cleary and Haas in the same team gives them every chance to start their series with a win.
