Is there something in the water there? I’ve just had the past week in Brisbane visiting family and friends but the main purpose of my trip was to attend the FOGs luncheon at Suncorp last Tuesday, then the State of Origin game the next evening.
It was a disappointing night for Queensland fans, but don’t forget, the players wearing the Maroons jersey on Wednesday night would have been even more gutted.
But the personal attacks in the media on some of the Queensland players I think were way over the top.
Skipper Daley Cherry-Evans seemed to be the target of most of the criticism I heard and, to be fair, he didn’t seem to be at his best.
But he didn’t have a forward pack in front of him causing too much concern for the NSW forwards, and the Maroons backline certainly didn’t pose much of a threat.
Coach Billy Slater has some big calls to make, but I hope that sacking his captain and halfback isn’t one of them.
Understanding why Queensland lacked so much field position, certainly in the first half, is one of the main areas that need to be addressed.
Add to that, investigating why NSW never looked uncomfortable, and I think the answers will speak for themselves in the selection room.
But the other point that took me by surprise was how unhappy the Broncos fans’ vibe seemed to be. Just comments I heard in general, they weren’t good, and so I just thought to myself, “What is going on here?”
I’m just talking about the average man in the street, just general chat you hear around the place. To me, it seemed really unhappy.
It doesn’t take much to change these things but the Broncos have to start with the results they are producing on the field. The Broncos brand is one of the strongest sporting brands in Australia, but walking around Brisbane at the moment, you certainly wouldn’t think that.
