‘We can play so much better’: Slater urges Queensland to put foot on throat
Billy Slater has promised Queensland will be “so much better” as they try to seal the State of Origin series in Brisbane on the back of one of their most heroic wins.
With his foot on NSW’s throat after their remarkable 26-18 win in Adelaide on Wednesday night, the Maroons coach promised his team will improve after dedicating the win to Queenslanders who have battled natural disasters in recent years.
“There’s a lot of upside,” Slater gushed about his team. “The fabric of the team is great. The foundation of our team is fantastic.
“We can play so much better than what we played tonight. We didn’t play overly smart at times. I won’t use the word that I probably used in the coach’s box.
“But I’ll tell you what, there is a lot of guts and determination and courage in this footy team. We needed to play like Queenslanders for Queenslanders and our trait as Queenslanders [is] never give up.
“Queenslanders go through drought, they go through cyclones, they go through floods, they go through a lot of adversity – and we try and represent our people in that way as well.”
Billy Slater and Daly Cherry-Evans celebrate after their Origin victory.Credit: Getty
The Blues seemed destined for a 1-0 series cushion when leading by two points inside the final 10 minutes with Maroons prop Tom Flegler in the sin-bin for an illegal tackle on Tom Trbojevic.
But a 12-man Maroons scored twice through Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Cameron Munster to stun NSW, who now need to win at Suncorp Stadium in three weeks to save the series and send it to a decider in Sydney.
NSW coach Brad Fittler has only won once in five attempts in Brisbane since taking the reins.
Asked about the decision to bin Flegler, Slater admitted he hadn’t watched enough replays of the incident, before adding: “They don’t usually get those ones wrong.”
Winger Selwyn Cobbo failed to finish the match with a hip complaint, but Slater will have Jeremiah Nanai available for selection in game two after serving a suspension for the Cowboys.
His decision to leave out Newcastle pair Kalyn Ponga and Dane Gagai was also vindicated with debutant Reece Walsh and Tabuai-Fidow starring after their call-ups.
Queensland captain Daly Cherry-Evans expressed caution despite the Maroons being firm favourites to win their third series in four years and hand Slater back-to-back victories since taking over as Maroons coach.
“We’ll enjoy it tonight, but we also understand that it’s only game one,” Cherry-Evans said. “So we won’t get too ahead of ourselves just yet.”
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