Forget Johnathan Thurston.
And brush Greg Inglis.
Queensland assistant Michael Hagan believes the key to the Maroons keeping alive hopes of an eighth straight State of Origin series win is someone who won’t even appear on the field – coach Mal Meninga.
If anyone could be excused for being flustered ahead of Queensland’s must-win game two clash at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday night it would be Meninga.
NSW took aim at the master coach, claiming him ditching the loyalty card and cutting two incumbent players for the game showed signs of panic.
Then he made headlines for all the wrong reasons when he was asked to leave a Brisbane hotel by security – just hours after claiming he was fed up with players’ off-field alcohol-fuelled antics.
However, Hagan claimed Meninga would be Queensland’s X-factor in not only game two but for as long as he held the reins.
“Mal is as calm and cool as any coach I have dealt with,” Hagan wrote on his yahoo7 column.
“He has had to answer claims of not being loyal and the fact he was out having a beer.
“None of that worries him. He really is Queensland’s secret weapon.”
Hagan refuted claims that Meninga had moved away from his “pick and stick” policy, saying players were given a chance in game one to press their claims for the rest of the series.
“We made a couple of changes from Origin I and have been accused of not being loyal to some players,” he said.
“We only made the changes due to some interpretations and form.
“But I can assure you Mal is an extremely loyal bloke.
“He gave the team a chance to win Origin I and they couldn’t pull it off.
“Mal could have made the changes before game one but he gave everybody a first-up chance.”
Hagan said maligned trio Inglis, Thurston and fullback Billy Slater were ready to cut loose in game two.
“The bigger the occasion, the better these blokes play. And with Mal at the helm, we are always confident,” he said.
AAP