Queensland has named its team for the opening game of the 2013 State Of Origin series with a few interestings selections in their side.
Mal Meninga was never going to move away from a backline that has won the bulk of the last seven series, but the Maroons forward rotation looks a little different with a few players in there that would raise a few eyebrows.
Queensland have got with four forwards in the bench with is interesting. Its a luxury Mal Meninga has with so many players in the side that have the ability to play at a high level in multiple positions.
Here is the official Queensland lineup:
QLD State Of Origin Team – Game One
1. Billy Slater
2. Brent Tate
3. Greg Inglis
4. Justin Hodges
5. Darius Boyd
6. Johnathan Thurston
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Matt Scott
9. Cameron Smith (C)
10. David Shillington
11. Nate Myles
12. Sam Thaiday
13. Ash Harrison
14. Corey Parker
15. Ben Te’o
16. Chris McQueen
17. Matt Gillett
I’m surprised Queensland selected Corey Parker. I tend to think he plays fairly well at club level but that State Of Origin level is beyond him.
Ben Te’o gets a run on the bench in a move that will be followed by the phrase “Innocent until proven guilty” about 50,000 times in the next 9 days.
Chris McQueen is an interesting selection. He is a handy player at club level for South Sydney and always puts in 100% for the Bunnies. It will be interesting to see if he can carry that form up to the next level.
There isn’t too much you can really say about the Queensland side. I tend to think they look a little vunreble in the forwards but look at that back line….they are going to be hard to beat.
