State of Origin Game 3 news: Laurie Daley's NSW coaching failings laid bare as questionable decisions called out, Stefano Utoikamanu

Courier-Mail

4 days ago

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COMMENT
When the dust settles on this year's State of Origin heartbreak for the Blues there is one call that has to be made before any others, relieving Laurie Daley of his post after Wednesday night's 24-12 defeat.
Daley is a NSW legend, arguably one of if not the best to ever don the jersey, but his selection and tactical blunders have again let the state down.
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That was perfectly encapsulated in just four seconds, as Stefano Utoikamanu – a player controversially picked over the likes of Terrell May and Keaon Koloamatangi – failed not only to not stop Maroons hooker Harry Grant from scoring with seconds remaining in the first half, but didn't even try to put a hand on him.
You can watch the moment Stefano Utoikamanu was caught ball watching in the player above
That try sent Queensland into the break 20-0 up and set the Blues an impossible task.
While social media was full of blame towards ref Ashley Klein and NSW halves Jarome Luai and Nathan Cleary, the main takeaway from the disgraceful first half performance of the Blues should have been how Daley got it wrong... again.
The Utoikamanu selection in particular was an absolute nightmare.
Laurie Daley's selection failures were laid bare in the Origin decider. Image: Nine/Getty
The hulking Storm forward on several occasions was seen pushing out to the flanks to take a breather and repeatedly failed to put his body on the line, the effort areas that ultimately win or lose you a State of Origin.
But his effort, or lack thereof, to stop Grant from crossing the stripe was embarrassing.
As the 27-year-old Maroons hooker burrowed for the line, Utoikamanu stood and watched before putting his hands on his knees and was seen grasping for air after Grant planted the ball down.
The Storm prop had at least four seconds in which he could have attempted to help stop Grant, however the entire time he just stood and watched from a metre away as his teammates tried and failed to stop Grant.
Stefano Utoikamanu (right) was caught ball watching as Harry Grant scored. Image: Nine
And his Game 3 effort came as no surprise after he was caught out repeatedly in Game 2.
Utoikamanu only had four runs for 41 metres in a 24-minute stint off the bench in Perth.
He failed to make any sort of impact and the only time he was noticed was when he prevented a match-defining try to Nathan Cleary by failing to run through the line.
Utoikamanu was pinged for obstruction after he failed to get out of the way of Cleary after running a decoy line.
Replays showed that Utoikamanu stopped in the line, denying Queensland forward Patrick Carrigan an opportunity to stop the Blues No.7.
So his Game 3, which consisted of just 6 runs for 54 metres in 26 minutes is no surprise as the failure to call up May or Koloamatangi showed once again Daley can't make the tough calls.
His selection also showed multiple red flags from the start.
NRL legends such as Matty Johns have spoken for years about the simple keys to win an Origin game, always keep moving and support your teammates in case you are needed, not only if you are needed.
The Storm prop did neither in Game 2 or 3 and like Daley, cannot be picked come this time next year.
And that feeling was unanimous amongst Blues fans as well.
'NSW had enough players there, but Utoikamanu stood and watched Harry Grant score that try. He's been on for 17 minutes and he stood and watched, 'too tired' to make one more play,' one NSW fan wrote on X after Grant's try.
'I don't think any NSW Blues have looked more out of place than Utoikamanu,' another added.
While a third said: 'Not sure I've seen a player gassed as much after 10 minutes as Utoikamanu'
Keaon Koloamatangi has been on fire in 2025. (Photo by)
Terrell May has been one of the form forwards of the NRL. (Photo by)
While the other very peculiar decision Daley made was that of the selection of Max King.
After earning a shock bench role for Game 1, when Mitch Barnett suffered a long-term injury, the Bulldogs enforcer was catapulted into the run-on side for Games 2 and 3.
In Game 2, King played just 25 minutes and took six runs for 47m.
In Game 3, his output was similarly sparse.
After leaving the field at the 22-minute mark he never came back on and for good reason.
The 28-year-old lacked any sort of punch and was easily stopped by the smaller Queensland pack every time he ran up the ball.
He took six runs for 37m, yikes.
Max King (middle) failed to provide any meaningful impact. (Photo by)
But Daley's blunders run far deeper than just those made at the selection table.
As the decider slipped away on Wednesday night, the NSW coach sat on his hands.
With the Blues lacking a clear punch through the middle early, instead of putting on NSW firebrand Spencer Leniu, he went with Utoikamanu instead.
And as the Blues lacked creativity throughout, it is almost inexplicable that the two X factors on the interchange, Connor Watson and Hudson Young, were kept warming the bench until the 52nd minute.
Laurie Daley insists he is the right man for the job, but the stats say otherwise
A defiant Daley said after Game 3 he should 'definitely' remain NSW coach in 2026 but the statistics say otherwise.
'Most definitely,' he said when asked if he should be the Blues coach next year after the match.
'What we have been building. I think I was disappointed with the result, but I think the players have had a really good campaign. We just didn't nail the moments, so we have to make sure we are better than that.
'I don't see any reason why that group can't. There is plenty of success, it's hard to win Origin series back-to-back. I think we have only won 5 in 45 years, so it's difficult. Queensland were always going to bounce back after last year.'
But Daley has now won just one of six series in charge and on each occasion has shown he is not willing to forego loyalty to make the hard call.
Keeping the same 17 for the third and deciding game blew up in his face and backed up the theory that he is simply too nice and too loyal to succeed as a coach at Origin level.
Michael Maguire shook things up last year and it led to immediate success.
While this year Maroons coach Billy Slater found himself under pressure for the first time, after his side were comprehensively beaten at their Suncorp fortress.
So what did he do? He pulled the trigger on several tough selection calls.
The decision to drop captain Daly Cherry-Evans and bring in Tom Dearden at halfback after Game 1, is a call if roles were reversed Daley simply wouldn't have made.
While he also resisted the temptation to replace the injured Kalyn Ponga with Reece Walsh, instead opting for the more consistent and reliable Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, an inspired decision.
Billy Slater made several tough selection calls that paid off. (Photo by)
Daley on the other hand overlooked two form props in May and Koloamatangi, for King and Utoikamanu.
Slater also nailed the selection decisions of Robert Toia and Gehamat Shibasaki.
The reality is NSW had the far better team and this was their series to lose and Daley must be held accountable for his selection decisions.
Blues selectors will now have to head back to that proverbial drawing board once again and the first choice they must make is relieving Daley of his duties.
Originally published as Laurie Daley's NSW coaching failure laid bare as damning four second clip shines light on blunder