2014 State of Origin

Merrin would spend time at front row, he's more than up to it and makes really good metres week in week out.

It's the wingers that are a total change of tact, my idea is by having them there, you're essentially gaining extra forwards coming out of the danger end, they both make excellent metres. There's always the danger that they'll kook it and come up with a few errors, but that's been the case with countless other NSW wing selections that don't offer the same hard running that these two do.

I think having them there will give NSW a really good roll on in the forwards early and see guys like Watmough and Buhrer be really effective off the bench as they won't have to shoulder all the hard work coming out of the danger end. I think a guy like Buhrer can cause some headaches running lines at tired legs for a 30 minute stint. I put Tariq there as he'd best fit that impact middle role for 25-30 minutes.

Went for Hayne and Hoppa in the centres as I think they're the most balanced centres available, damaging with the ball in their hands but also able to put their outside man away.

 

It was just something different, I don't know that it's the best side I could come up with, but it's a total change from what we've come up with over the past 7 series. An engine room made up of any combination of Sims, Merrin, Gallen, Tamou and Watmough would be more than up to it imo, especially backed up by those two wingers.

Would probably go something like:

20 minute mark- Tamou off for Sims
30 minute mark- Merrin of for Watmough, Farah off for Gidley,

55min mark- Gallen off For Tamou, Merrin on for Sims, Buhrer on for Lewis
60 minute mark- Farah on for Gidley
65 minute mark- Gallen on for Watmough
70ish minute mark- Lewis on for Buhrer/Bird

With an interchange up your sleeve, probably Sims/Watmough back on late for Tamou or Gidley one last crack for the final 5-10.

 

I think Buhrer is a footballing genius, can ball play, run good lines, back up good footwork and good vision and I probably just over rate Tariq a bit, there'd be a number of props I'd be happy to see take his place.

 

I know it seems like I'm kind of looking for a solution for a non existent problem with the running wingers and smaller forwards (Tariqs hardly small mind you) as our strength has been our improved ability to match them in the forwards in the last two series, which hasn't won us a series due to a lack of creativity.

But the more I look the more I can't see us beating them at their own game, that being having a strong pack, a chief organiser at dummy half and look to the backline to create points. There's no halves combination that leaves me confident that that would work, we just just don't quite have the personnel to get it over them.