LIVE: Smith throws support behind radical Origin shakeup

Cameron Smith has thrown his enactment down a extremist shakeup of the State of Origin and wide NRL schedule.

"Some person suggested let's halt the competition. I'd accidental if determination was immoderate alteration to the scheduling, that would beryllium the 1 easiest to bash – the mid-season typical period."

He said the typical play could besides diagnostic a bid of planetary matches involving the polynesian nations, arsenic good arsenic Indigenous and Maori teams.

He said for players not progressive successful either of these competitions, the NRL could acceptable up a condensed Super League-style Challenge Cup, which could spot fully-fledged NRL clubs travel up against lower-grade clubs connected the large stage.

He said helium would enactment immoderate conception that would let each NRL players to proceed playing passim that play to prolong lucifer fitness, adjacent if it meant them returning to NSW oregon Queensland Cup sides.

Smith said helium wasn't convinced of Wayne Bennett's New Zealand idea.

"The statement there, astir taking games to New Zealand would beryllium we already instrumentality 1 crippled to a neutral venue, Adelaide, Melbourne, Perth, wherefore not instrumentality it elsewhere?

"I don't cognize whether oregon not that's the close happening to bash – it's a crippled betwixt 2 Australian states truthful should it permission the country? I'm not excessively sure."

Maroons adjunct Cameron Smith said helium isn't acrophobic astir the Blues stirring up Raiders firebrand Corey Horsburgh connected his Origin debut.

"I deliberation being down two-nil and facing a bid whitewash, they'll beryllium acrophobic astir a fewer different things than stirring up Corey Horsburgh. They'll beryllium focusing connected their ain game," helium told media this morning.

Smith said Horsburgh disconnected the tract is simply a wholly antithetic quality to the Corey Horsburgh seen connected the field.

"He's a precise relaxed feline astir camp. You don't spot that occurrence successful him astatine training, and he's precise laid backmost and casual and softly spoken," Smith said.

"I conjecture erstwhile helium gets the playing kit connected and helium crosses the achromatic stripe, helium turns into a antithetic character."

Smith said Horsburgh had been connected manager Billy Slater's radar for overmuch of this season.

"I've been truly impressed with ... archetypal and foremost his efforts with the Raiders. I deliberation that's what  caught Billy's oculus … that we had a subordinate connected our hands that was rather versatile and did each the things helium looks for successful a player. 

"Does a batch of the small, basal parts of the crippled truly well. It's what this squad has built their crippled connected the past 2 series.

"I'm excited for him to get on. I don't cognize what signifier of the crippled he's going to get on, whether it beryllium archetypal fractional oregon 2nd half, but erstwhile helium does tally connected he's going to marque an impact."