From reserve grade to Blues squad, Kiraz is on the cusp of Origin debut
With To'o nursing a lateral ligament tear in his knee, Kiraz – the Blues 18th man – is a chance of starting.
'Obviously, Bizza's scan was a good one, but again [he's on] restricted duties, so you just can't afford to take any chances there, that's the reason Jacob's 18th man,' NSW coach Laurie Daley said.
'So, he'll [Kiraz] train the majority of the sessions so he won't miss a beat, so if we need to make that change, we can, we've got that flexibility there, so it won't disrupt our preparation. More importantly, Bizza can try and get right, and Jacob, if he plays, has got a good 11-day prep going into his first Origin.
'You'd like to think by Saturday [To'o is] going to have to do some decent training. It probably still won't be with the team, but you'll have to do some decent training by Saturday.'
Kiraz's NRL career has been anything but conventional. After being handed a contract by the Cowboys in 2019, he ended up returning to Sydney when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the country.
In 2020, he joined Newcastle on a development contract, but couldn't break out of reserve grade.
Since the Bulldogs took a chance on him in 2022, he hasn't disappointed – Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga was so impressed with Kiraz's performance that he picked him in his 2024 squad, before he had to withdraw with a back injury.
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