Mitchell Moses says Nicho Hynes “deserves the opportunity” to play halfback for the Blues, with the returning Eels star backing his state to get the job done after he made an incredible comeback from injury after more than two months out.
The Parramatta No.7 is the incumbent NSW halfback but was unavailable for selection for the series opener after he fractured his left foot in round three.
Moses would have been the obvious choice to play with Nathan Cleary out injured, but as hard as he pushed for an early return, it wasn’t meant to be, with Hynes to steer the side around the park despite carrying his own calf issue.
“I hope they win. I think the team Madge (Blues coach Michael Maguire) has picked is unbelievable,” Moses said, with the Eels star likely to be considered for game two if NSW don’t win next week.
What a sight 😍#PARRAdise#NRLEelsSharkspic.twitter.com/vKRCPft61Q
— Parramatta Eels (@TheParraEels) May 30, 2024
“I’ve got to play good footy here and that stuff will sort itself out, but I really hope they get the win. I wish them all the best.
“He’s picked a great side and I think they’ll get the job done.
“It’s a big opportunity for him (Hynes). He won a Dally M a few years ago and is playing great footy, so he deserves the opportunity. He’s going to go out there and do the jersey proud.”
There were hopes Moses would be able to return by Magic Round to give himself a couple of games to impress Blues selectors, but the Eels were never going to rush back their best player until he was fully fit.
“I tried to push it and I tried to come back early to give myself every chance to get out there,” he explained.
“It was tough to watch from the sidelines, but I gave it every chance to try to come back early, but it just wasn’t ready.
“I’m just happy in myself that I gave it every chance and tried my best to come back early. I’ve got a screw in there which is a bit annoying. I’m probably going to feel it for the next few weeks.”
You wouldn’t have known he’d been out for so long as Moses and the returning Clint Gutherson inspired the Eels to just their fourth win of the season.
Moses set the tone early with a booming kick that Will Kennedy caught just short of his own try line, while his running game is as strong as ever as he sprinted down the short side to set up a Bailey Simonsson try.
“I probably only had one kicking session in the past 10 weeks and that was on Monday,” he revealed.
“To get that one off (the first kick) felt pretty good. I just had to be out there and be a voice and try to be involved as much as possible.
“I probably wasn’t really happy with my game, to be honest. There are areas (I can improve) because I put one out on the full and I’m probably getting used to the speed of the game.
“I think I can be a lot better in some areas, but I just needed to get through the 80 minutes and just be a voice. We were desperate and that’s what we needed to be.”
His stint on the sidelines was made worse when Brad Arthur was sacked as coach, with Moses feeling helpless to try to save the job of a man who has elevated his game over the years.
“It was really hard, especially with what happened (to Brad),” he said.
“I was helpless to see the coach that I had pretty much since I came to the club and I had such a good relationship with him. He taught me a lot about footy, and I’m probably not the player I am today without him.
“It was pretty tough watching on the sidelines and being helpless and not being able to help at all, and then to see what happened.
“That’s footy, and I had to move on and we had to move on as a club. Today (Thursday) was the first step moving forward and we need to keep winning now.”
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Jake Trbojevic in ugly fallout as NSW captain could be facing the axe for State of Origin II
Trbojevic played less than 30 minutes in the Blues’ heavy Game I defeat.
NRL commentator Andrew Voss believes Blues captain Jake Trbojevic may be dropped for Game II after his limited involvement in the State of Origin opener. NSW coach Michael Maguire handed the Manly lock the armband after initially dropping last year’s captain and NSW regular James Tedesco from the side.
Maguire was largely expected to name Panthers lock Isaah Yeo as the new Blues captain when Tedesco was axed in favour of Dylan Edwards but instead made Trbojevic the NSW skipper. The move was heavily criticised from the outset but following a Game I disaster, calls are mounting to drop the Manly veteran from the side entirely for Game II.
NRL commentator Andrew Voss has questioned why forward Jake Trbojevic was named as Blues captain in the first place following his underwhelming performance in Game I. Image: Getty With the Blues on the back foot almost immediately after debutant centre Joseph Suaalii was sent off just seven minutes into Wednesday night’s clash after his shoulder made direct contact with Reece Walsh’s head, if ever NSW needed a true leader it was then. Trbojevic started in the front row alongside Payne Haas, but the Sea Eagles star struggled to find his footing in the game as NSW was left to rely on other forwards to make inroads through the middle of the park.
Trbojevic was the first player taken off the field by Maguire in the 25th minute and didn’t return to the action until the 75th minute when the game was well and truly over. After making just five runs in the match for minimal metres, Trbojevic made next to no positive impact on the game and is now at risk of not only losing his captaincy for Game II but his spot in the team altogether.
Andrew Voss (left) says the decision to select Jake Trbojevic as captain was a mistake. And Voss says it was something that he could see coming from a mile away. “On (Jake) Trbojevic, the captain of NSW, I hate to say I told you so but I did say (it),” Voss said on SEN 1170 Breakfast.
“They made a rod for their back by giving Jake the captaincy, Jake doesn’t need the ‘c’ next to his name to be the leader and the captain. But now that you’ve made him the captain, this was always going to happen, I think even (if the game) was 13 versus 13, he’s not playing a lot of minutes, so that was always going to be a discussion topic.
“It’s not a win or lose on the game, it’s not a game changer but it was always going to be a discussion topic and now it becomes a big topic because they lose and it’s so little minutes, it’s a long time off the field, the captain just sitting their watching. There’s no way he can turn the course of the game.”
Could Jake Trbojevic make way for State of Origin II?
In less than half an hour of playing time, Trbojevic only made five runs for a mere 37 metres and with such minimal impact, there are arguably better options to replace him. The likes of Mitch Barnett and Terrell May would have all arguably made an impact in Game I and may be logical replacements for the Manly lock if Maguire chooses to go a different route in Game II.
Former NSW advisor and selector Greg Alexander believes there may not be a place in the team for Trbojevic in Game II as his lack of impact was made abundantly clear in in the Origin opener. “You needed fast legs, you needed speed out there,” Alexander added. “The bench was speed, Spencer Leniu, Hudson Young, Hamole Olakau’atu, young quick legs.”
“Jake is Origin through and through, but if that’s the way the Blues are going to use him he needs to go. NSW will get more value out of Barnett, a player capable of big minutes with the ability to bend the defensive line.”
Jake Trbojevic (centre) could be on the chopping block for State of Origin II. Image: Getty Phil Gould agreed that the reason the skipper spent most of Game I warming the bench was because there were simply more effective options than him and said there needed to be changes to the side ahead of Game II. “I thought the signs were there even before they got down to 12 men,” Gould said.
“They did break them down the left side and had already scored a try. The speed of Queensland and the creativity was always going to be a problem. It was just exacerbated by being down to 12 men and allowed Queensland to virtually play as they like.”
