3 minute read
Queensland coach Mal Meninga has taken a fresh swipe at NSW, saying they do not have the right "mentality" to play State of Origin footy.
Still shaking his head over NSW's game one reaction, Queensland coach Mal Meninga has taken a shot at the Blues by claiming they don't have the right "mentality" to play Origin.
In the fallout from a host of NSW complaints over Origin I's officials, whistleblower Matt Cecchin and video referee Sean Hampstead were sacked for next week's second game in Sydney.
So incensed was coach Ricky Stuart after Queensland's 18-10 win, he threw a media ban on his team - which he was later forced to withdraw - and hired an independent analyst who reportedly revealed Queensland went unpunished in game one for 10 incidents that warranted penalties.
Stuart hasn't backed down ahead of game two, threatening to speak with league officials about the new-look referees before next week's Sydney showdown.
But Meninga said Queensland would never let the referees become an Origin issue no matter what happened on the field.
"If we get beaten we just put our hand up and say 'we should play better' - they (NSW) don't seem to have that sort of mentality," Meninga said during a team visit to Roma, in the state's south-west on Wednesday.
"We understand the referees have got a tough job to do - all we can do is play by their rulings.
"We just get on and do the job. That's who we are."
Meninga rated Origin I as one of the great series openers - and he should know as a 1980 original.
But the Maroons mentor was frustrated that game one had been overshadowed by controversy, namely Hampstead's awarding of a contentious second-half Greg Inglis try.
"I was fortunate to be involved (in Origin) from the start ..(and) that was one of the best first games I have seen in a long, long time - it doesn't get the recognition that it deserves," he said.
Asked about NSW's post-game complaints, Meninga joked "that's Ricky".
However he was deadly serious when he said he was already sick of the negative press from NSW ahead of game two.
"The first 24 hours (after game one) I read the papers (then stopped) - you get sick of it after a while," he said.
"We are not like that. That's not the way that we prepare.
"Obviously they (NSW) are trying to instil a bit of hatred into NSW supporters, trying to boost their team's morale by saying they were unlucky but that's not the road we take.
"Now we've got to go to Sydney and prove them wrong."
Queensland were honoured with a street parade on Wednesday in Roma - hometown of Origin godfather Artie Beetson.
It was an emotional time for the team, especially after Beetson's death from a heart attack on the Gold Coast in December 2011.
Roma - which was also where retired legend Darren Lockyer grew up - saluted their other favourite sons, current Maroons flyer Brent Tate and ex-internationals Willie Carne and Wally Fullerton-Smith on the main street.
The only Maroons absent were Ash Harrison (groin) and Matt Scott (personal reasons).
Officials were still confident Harrison would play and hoped Scott would enter Origin camp on the Sunshine Coast on Thursday.