State of Origin Odds: Injury Woes For Both Sides
June 6th, 2014 by TJ DilferRugby league is tough. You can see that week in and week out in the NRL – those guys hold nothing back and they give absolutely everything for the cause. And the State of Origin is faster, tougher and harder than even the NRL, so you have to expect injuries. They make the remainder of the series interesting for both sides, and they might be having an effect on the State of Origin odds, too…
For the Blues, the key injuries look to be to the Morris twins. It’s a mark of the man and of the level of competition in the State of Origin that Brett Morris played the bulk of Game One with what turned out to be a broken shoulder – and made that crucial over-the-line tackle to preserve the NSW lead, too! He’s been ruled out of the rest of the series, as has brother Josh, leaving the Blues to refresh their right-side back line. It gives other players a chance to shine, of course, but coaches like settled selection.
And speaking of settled selection, Queensland came into the series with a settled side, but now that first result and some key injuries have forced changes. Cooper Cronk’s broken arm might well have been a deciding factor in the first game, and it will rule him out of the rest of the series. Billy Slater’s loss will be felt almost as keenly by the Maroons, and there will have to be a reorganisation of their attacking options that could see Greg Inglis at five-eighth. Not ideal from a coach’s perspective and difficult for the players to adapt to, but the pressure is on Queensland to bounce back in Game Two. We’ll be watching!
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