The Queensland No.1 jersey may be up for grabs after Valentine Holmes’ NRL return but Maroons great Gary Belcher says Kalyn Ponga is still the best option at fullback.
The pressure appears to be on Ponga before the NRL season has even started after Holmes last week claimed he would bounce back to his best at fullback for new club North Queensland following his aborted NFL sojourn.
But former Queensland fullback Belcher, who played 16 Origins, reckons there is no debate – Ponga should remain at fullback for the Maroons.
While Ponga missed last year’s Origin III due to injury, Belcher considered the Newcastle star a Maroons incumbent and believed the 21-year-old’s time spent in the Knights halves last year would also give him the edge over Holmes.
“He is the incumbent and Queensland always stick by the players who have done the job for them in the past,” Belcher told Former Origin Greats website.
“Secondly is the fact that he probably has that better passing game in his arsenal because of the time he has spent in the halves, whereas Val has really played most of his footy on the wing.
“That playmaking role is such an important part of being a modern fullback and Kalyn is probably at this stage a bit stronger in that regard.”
Still Belcher looked forward to Holmes staking his Origin claim in 2020, predicting the flyer to take his game to “another level” after impressing in the Cowboys pre-season following his failed NFL stint at New York Jets.
“Valentine is prepared to do the work and you can see how much he has already put in (by) getting his body shape back to the optimum for rugby league and building his endurance,” Belcher said.
“I think Val is an excellent signing for North Queensland. He will be so good for them and so good for Queensland as well.
“He is still only 24. He has scored eight tries in five Origin games and scored 11 tries in two Tests at the World Cup before he left for the NFL, and I don’t think we have even seen the best of him yet.
“Moving to fullback will really take his game to another level and that is great news for the Cowboys and the Maroons.”
