Johnathan Thurston will play a key support role in the buildup to next week’s State of Origin opener after being named in Kevin Walters’ Queensland squad as 18th man, but the Cowboys star is “very unlikely” to feature on the Suncorp Stadium pitch as he continues to struggle with a shoulder injury.
Thurston, who has played 36 straight Origins, will be given every chance to prove his fitness this week and take his tally to 37 in Brisbane, but Walters said the Maroons are preparing for Game I on the assumption he will not make it.
Anthony Milford, the Brisbane Broncos five-eighth, has been handed the No6 jumper in place of Thurston, having been given the nod ahead of Melbourne’s Cameron Munster.
“Johnathan Thurston is under a fitness cloud,” Walters said at the team announcement on Monday. “Given his position, it’s our right to provide an opportunity to get himself fit and play.
“It’s unlikely but we wanted to give Johnathan every chance to prove his fitness over the week. Given he’s played 36 straight Origins, he’s earned his right to come down and see if he’s able to play.”
Walters added: “It will be a massive help for everyone even if he can’t be on the field. Just being around the camp [will help].”
Walters said Milford was ready to make the step up to representative football.
“Anthony deserves an opportunity at the next level. We know he’s more than capable,” Walters said.
There was no place for Billy Slater, whose Origin career may now be over at the age of 33. The Storm star, who has returned to good form since undergoing a second shoulder reconstruction, was again overlooked in favour of Darius Boyd in the No 1 jumper.
“It was a very tough decision that we had to make around Billy,” Walters said. “He has been a great player for Queensland, but we just felt that [for] game one, Darius was Queensland’s best player in last year’s series and on the Four Nations at the end of last year he was in the top two or three players for Australia and again this year in the Test he was outstanding.
“And the second part of that is, I think it would have been a little bit unfair on Billy to put him under so much pressure in game one of a series [with] everyone expecting him to come out and change the world.
“We’ve relieved him of those duties and I know Darius will get the job done for us. He’s a great player and deserves first crack at the No 1 jumper.”
In the NSW camp, Nathan Peats and Jake Trbojevic will make their Origin debuts for the Blues after being named by coach Laurie Daley on Monday night.
The pair are among six changes made to the team that claimed last year’s dead rubber in Homebush. Brett Morris, Jarryd Hayne and Mitchell Pearce earned recalls while Boyd Cordner was appointed captain, taking over from Origin retiree Paul Gallen.
On a dramatic opening day of Blues camp, Peats’ call-up came hours after Penrith hooker Peter Wallace arrived in camp at The Star only to be ruled out for six weeks with a groin injury.
Wallace was set to make his first Origin appearance since famously playing with a ruptured testicle in the last of his four games in 2009, but was hurt in the Panthers’ win over Newcastle on Sunday.
Peats’ selection likely spells the end of the Origin career of long-time vice-captain Robbie Farah, who was in a three-way battle with Peats and Wallace for the No9 jumper.
In contrast, Morris, Hayne and Pearce will re-enter the Origin arena after all three missed last year’s series defeat for different reasons.
Morris made way following the emergence of Panthers star Josh Mansour, however has been given a reprieve due to the state’s sudden wing crisis.
Mansour suffered a major knee injury playing in the Four Nations last year, while Manly’s Tom Trbojevic was widely tipped to fill the role before also picking up a knee issue a fortnight ago.
Morris will form a new-look left edge with Hayne, who marks his return to the NSW line-up for the first time since their drought-breaking series win in 2014.
Queensland team: Darius Boyd, Corey Oates, Will Chambers, Justin O’Neill, Dane Gagai, Anthony Milford, Cooper Cronk, Dylan Napa, Cameron Smith (captain), Nate Myles, Josh Papalii, Matt Gillett, Josh McGuire. Interchange: Michael Morgan, Sam Thaiday, Aidan Guerra, Jacob Lillyman. 18th man: Johnathan Thurston.
NSW team: James Tedesco, Blake Ferguson, Josh Dugan, Jarryd Hayne, Brett Morris, James Maloney, Mitchell Pearce, Aaron Woods, Nathan Peats, Andrew Fifita, Josh Jackson, Boyd Cordner (captain), Tyson Frizell. Bench: David Klemmer, Wade Graham, Jake Trbojevic, Jack Bird.
