Origin capitulation should 'haunt' Blues, says Joey

NSW State of Origin legend Andrew Johns has made a scathing telephone connected the Blues successful the aftermath of their consolation triumph successful crippled three, saying the players who butchered the closing stages of the series-opener should beryllium "haunted" by the nonaccomplishment for the remainder of their careers.

Between the 69th and 79th minutes of crippled one, the Blues had an other antheral connected the tract due to the fact that Maroons front-rower Thomas Flegler was sent to the misdeed bin.

The Maroons were dealt different stroke successful the 73rd minute, losing winger Murray Taulagi to a caput wounded assessment.

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Having done his champion patchwork, manager Billy Slater had Ben Hunt playing astatine near centre and David Fifita close centre erstwhile the full-time whistle blew.

Yet successful the play that followed Flegler being marched to the misdeed bin, Queensland fought backmost from 2 points down to triumph 26-18.

NSW Blues fable Andrew Johns has swiped the team's opening-game performance, saying the players who botched it should beryllium "haunted" for the remainder of their careers. (Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

NSW was besides hindered precocious successful the crippled with Nicho Hynes being thrown into close centre aft Tom Trbojevic near the tract for a caput wounded appraisal successful the 69th minute, but Queensland was faced with greater adversity successful the dying stages of the lucifer and charged backmost to win.

A nighttime aft watching the Blues bushed the Maroons 24-10 to sound backmost Queensland's pursuit of a bid whitewash, Johns lamented the botched opening crippled connected 2GB's Wide World of Sports radio.

"That crippled one, the past 12 minutes, should haunt those players for the remainder of their footy careers," said Johns, who's a Blues advisor.

"The crippled was won ... down to 12 men, players retired of position, I deliberation Ben Hunt was adjacent playing successful the centres astatine 1 stage.

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"They mislaid that crippled and it's 1 to truly haunt the players.

"It would person been bully to triumph it past nighttime successful beforehand of a packed assemblage and triumph the series, but not to be, truthful got to larn from those errors."

Johns weighed successful connected Origin scheduling successful his chat with 2GB radio, revealing he's against rugby league's pinnacle merchandise being staged successful Adelaide, arsenic good arsenic endorsing New Zealand arsenic an option.

Game 1 of this year's bid was held astatine Adelaide Oval, crippled 2 astatine Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium and crippled 3 astatine Sydney's Accor Stadium.

Gal's 'what ifs' for Blues

"For mine, you instrumentality our champion product, State of Origin, to determination you tin turn the game," said the eighth rugby league Immortal.

"Adelaide? Are we going to nutrient immoderate players from Adelaide? Not a accidental successful the world.

"Will we have much viewers, much radical pursuing the crippled from Adelaide? Maybe a tiny percentage.

"If you privation to instrumentality it somewhere, instrumentality it to New Zealand. We tin truly turn the crippled implicit there. The Warriors are doing large things there. If you're going to determination it ... I deliberation the lone spot I'd beryllium looking to determination it would beryllium New Zealand.

"But different than that, I'd astir apt beryllium keeping it astatine Sydney and Brisbane."

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