Blues stars cleared for Origin III as Daley weighs up pack shuffle

Blues winger Brian To'o has been cleared of any serious knee injury and will be available to take his place on the flank for NSW in next Wednesday's State of Origin decider.
To'o was the Blues best player in Origin II despite a limited preparation due to a hamstring concern and was sent for precautionary scans on a knee issue picked up in Penrith's 8-6 upset of Canterbury last Thursday.
The Panthers confirmed on Sunday that scan results showed no serious damage after To'o played on with his left knee strapped after a first-half knock.
Blues staff are also comfortable with To'o's fitness and any need to manage his training loads ahead of the July 9 clash given he barely trained ahead of game two, when he scored a hat-trick and ran for 229 metres.
To'o's citing for a high tackle on Bulldogs centre Bronson Xerri briefly raised concerns of him being rubbed out of Origin III, though the match review committee deemed the tackle not worthy of charge.
NSW coach Laurie Daley is set to name his squad for the decider on Sunday evening after hooker Reece Robson plays for North Queensland in the last game of round 17.
One of few selection calls being considered by the Blues is whether Rabbitohs forward Keaon Koloamatangi unseats a front-rower - either Max King or Stefano Utoikamanu - given Koloamatangi has the advantage of also being able to play on the edge.
Raiders back-rower Hudson Young was rested by Canberra this weekend as he manages an ongoing groin issue, which required a cortisone injection, but he is not in doubt for Blues selection.

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‘Not a boil': Jarome Luai clears air on health scare as Blues teammate races clock to be fit for Origin decider

News.com.au

18 minutes ago

News.com.au

‘Not a boil': Jarome Luai clears air on health scare as Blues teammate races clock to be fit for Origin decider

Blues coach Laurie Daley says strike winger Brian To'o needs to start doing 'decent' training by Saturday to prove his fitness, with Jacob Kiraz to do the majority of sessions this week to ensure he's ready to go if there's a late switch for the Origin decider. To'o overcame a hamstring concern to score a hat-trick in game two in Perth, but he appeared to injure his left knee during Penrith's epic win over the Bulldogs last week. That he finished the game is a good sign, but NSW won't risk him if he's not fully fit and able to train properly by the weekend. 'Bizza's (To'o) scan was a good one, but (he'll be on) restricted duties because you can't afford to take any chances,' Daley said. 'That's the reason why Jacob's 18th man. Jacob will train the majority of the sessions so he won't miss a beat. 'If we need to make that change then we will because we've got the flexibility there and it won't disrupt our preparation. 'More importantly, Bizza can try to get right, and if Jacob plays, he'll have a good 11-day prep before he makes his Origin debut.' To'o wasn't the only injury concern heading into Blues camp on Monday, but he's the only one still in doubt with halves Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai both overcoming recent setbacks. Cleary battled a groin complaint in Perth and didn't do the goalkicking that night or for the Panthers last week, but that didn't stop him from coming up with the game-winning play when he charged down a Matt Burton kick to score. 'Feeling good, it was a bloody tough game on Thursday night but pulled out of that really well,' he said. 'In terms of the groin, it's feeling better every single day. I even compare this time last week and it feels a lot better. I'm happy with that. 'It's mainly just the goalkicking (that I can't do). I haven't even tried to goalkick yet. It's one of those things that you don't want to try too early and get another setback, so I'm mainly focusing on making sure I don't have any disruptions in actually playing. 'I think it's something that we want to speak about quite early in the week so it's not something that gets chopped and changed too late.' Cleary is looking forward to lining up alongside great mate Luai one more time after the Wests Tigers co-captain was a late scratching for their game against Manly. Luai picked up a nasty fever and his whole chest went red, but the star playmaker stressed the injury wasn't what was first reported. 'It was just a wound, not a boil,' he explained after spending three days in hospital. 'When I saw the word boil I was like 'oh man, the boys are gonna roast me'. They're all giving it to me. I'll cop that on the chin, but I am just happy I am back feeling a lot better. 'I was probably a bit rundown from backing up after Origin, you start to catch things a bit easier. I got a bit of a staph infection. I went to hospital after the captain's run and tried to get those antibiotics into my system and be right to play the next day. 'I got there and the doctor said it was a lot worse than what we thought it was. I am feeling a lot better now, I am grateful for that. You take for granted sometimes when you're in good health, so good to be back now.'

Star's horror after missing flight to Origin camp

Perth Now

2 hours ago

Perth Now

Star's horror after missing flight to Origin camp

Stefano Utoikamanu's preparations for the State of Origin decider couldn't have gotten off to a worse start after the Blues prop arrived late into camp after he missed his flight from Melbourne to Sydney on Monday morning. As Blues players gathered at the NSWRL, media were told that three squad members would be missing, with Payne Haas getting treatment on his back in Brisbane, while Bradman Best was returning from Hamilton Island. But the biggest story was Utoikamanu, who misread his flight details and arrived just in time for the team's media commitments ahead of game three next Wednesday. 'Not a good way to start. It was something really stupid,' the Storm prop said, worried that he could have been punished for the innocent mistake. 'I looked at my flight and it said 10am departure, but for some reason I thought it meant 10am boarding time. 'I was getting ready to leave about an hour before and I looked at my flight details again. 'I had to call Frank (team performance manager Frank Ponissi) and told him I was going to miss my flight. It was pretty crazy and my head is still rattled. 'I thought I was going to come here and do two interviews, but I ended up doing a lot. I'm still rattled and feel bad that I missed my flight.' Utoikamanu was dropped off by his partner in Tullamarine after a member of the Blues staff booked him on another flight, but it turns out it wasn't necessary. 'I had a pretty good run with the traffic, but I didn't want to risk trying to get there and then missing the flight because that would have made it worse,' he said. 'That flight ended up getting delayed by about 20 minutes, so I think I would have made it anyway.' The hulking prop forward sat next to someone who had no idea who he was, but the waiting Sydney media all had questions for him ahead of the biggest game of his career. Utoikamanu joined the Storm this year so he could play in important matches, and it's taken only half a season for him to take his place on the bench with everything on the line. 'This is the biggest game that I've played in my career,' he said. 'To play here in Sydney makes it even more special to do it in front of all the NSW fans. 'I think I'm just excited to go out and play with this group of boys. I'm still pretty rattled to get to play with all these guys.'

‘It was something really stupid': Origin preparations off to rough start after Stefano Utoikamanu misses flight to Sydney