Latest news with #TheHammer
Sydney Morning Herald
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Loz cause: Queensland produce another Origin boilover to stun Daley's Blues
Shibasaki was supposedly the weak link, but his performance was as inspired as his selection. The opening try was the result of him finding the time and space required to put Xavier Coates over. This was his Adam Mogg moment. Another controversial selection, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow in the No.1 jersey, also proved a masterstroke. Chosen ahead of Broncos poster boy Reece Walsh, he proved dangerous in broken play and a rock in defence on his try line. In a rare moment of broken-field action, 'The Hammer' kept moving when the Blues had given up on the play, giving Dearden a saloon passage to glory. Later, when the Blues began the second half with purpose, he produced two try-savers in the one set. Everyone in maroon was playing above themselves. Valentine Holmes, whose goal-kicking ensured his side kept going up in increments of six, produced a bell-ringer in defence. Nobody has previously stopped Brian To'o from close range, and yet Dearden somehow managed it. But nothing would have hurt the Blues more than watching Harry Grant burrowing over just before the break, a case of his desire to score stronger than that of the defence to stop him. It was wave after wave of Maroon and the Blues could do nothing to stop it. Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai have produced so many magnificent moments on this very stage, but just couldn't get their game together. Loading Not that their forwards gave them much to play off. This was another occasion where Daley's loyalty was not rewarded. He stuck with Stefano Utoikamanu and Max King, at a time when Terrell May and Keaon Koloamatangi were making compelling cases. Would they have made a difference? We'll never know. But it only adds to the belief that the series was won before a ball was kicked, at the selection table. It will be remembered as a boilover, the Blues again unable to finish what they started. But can it really be a boilover when it keeps happening?
The Age
09-07-2025
- Sport
- The Age
Loz cause: Queensland produce another Origin boilover to stun Daley's Blues
Shibasaki was supposedly the weak link, but his performance was as inspired as his selection. The opening try was the result of him finding the time and space required to put Xavier Coates over. This was his Adam Mogg moment. Another controversial selection, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow in the No.1 jersey, also proved a masterstroke. Chosen ahead of Broncos poster boy Reece Walsh, he proved dangerous in broken play and a rock in defence on his try line. In a rare moment of broken-field action, 'The Hammer' kept moving when the Blues had given up on the play, giving Dearden a saloon passage to glory. Later, when the Blues began the second half with purpose, he produced two try-savers in the one set. Everyone in maroon was playing above themselves. Valentine Holmes, whose goal-kicking ensured his side kept going up in increments of six, produced a bell-ringer in defence. Nobody has previously stopped Brian To'o from close range, and yet Dearden somehow managed it. But nothing would have hurt the Blues more than watching Harry Grant burrowing over just before the break, a case of his desire to score stronger than that of the defence to stop him. It was wave after wave of Maroon and the Blues could do nothing to stop it. Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai have produced so many magnificent moments on this very stage, but just couldn't get their game together. Loading Not that their forwards gave them much to play off. This was another occasion where Daley's loyalty was not rewarded. He stuck with Stefano Utoikamanu and Max King, at a time when Terrell May and Keaon Koloamatangi were making compelling cases. Would they have made a difference? We'll never know. But it only adds to the belief that the series was won before a ball was kicked, at the selection table. It will be remembered as a boilover, the Blues again unable to finish what they started. But can it really be a boilover when it keeps happening?
The Advertiser
02-07-2025
- Sport
- The Advertiser
The two players who will decide Origin glory. And it's not who you expect
"Critta" and "The Hammer" are the two players who hold the key to State of Origin III and where it will be won and lost in Sydney on Wednesday night. And with it the series, since NSW and Queensland are locked up at a game apiece after the Blues, having easily won game one in Brisbane, botched the first half of game two in Perth before making a comeback that just fell short. It's always easy to nominate star players in the halves as the ones who will have the biggest influence on a result. Particularly at Origin level where you have genuine superstars like NSW halfback Nathan Cleary and Queensland five-eighth Cameron Munster so heavily involved. But if you go back and have another look at Origins I and II you'll see what I mean when it comes to Blues centre Stephen "Critta" Crichton and Maroons fullback Hamiso "The Hammer" Tabuai-Fidow. We'll start with Tabuai-Fidow, who will be playing in his third different position in this series after being at left centre in game one and left wing in game two. Even before Kalyn Ponga, the Queensland fullback in Origins I and II, was injured playing for Newcastle last weekend I thought Brisbane's Reece Walsh should've been promoted to fullback for the decider. Ponga had been ordinary in the series so far. So I was shocked when, after Ponga became unavailable, Maroons coach Billy Slater moved Tabuai-Fidow from the wing to fullback and included Walsh only as 18th man. But I get it now. You're going to need top-shelf difference-makers in attack, playing in their best positions, to win this game and The Hammer is absolutely crushing it at fullback for the rising Dolphins in the NRL this season. He's a try-scorer (15 in 14 games this season, including four in his most recent game and eight in his last four), has a mammoth 68 tackle breaks and averages 175 running metres, with totals of 237 and 264 in his last two games. The Hammer can break a game open from anywhere on the field and as much as Queensland will be preparing to defend well in Origin III they know they're going to need to produce something extra-special in attack to win. Ponga wasn't doing it and Walsh, while he's a tremendous attacking player himself, isn't nearly as prolific a try-scorer as Tabuai-Fidow and tends to have more errors in him. Tabuai-Fidow scored two tries in Origin II - one with a straight-forward winger's finish and the other when he won the contest off a high kick to the corner. Playing at fullback is just going to make him more involved in attack and therefore even more dangerous. But leaving Walsh out and moving Tabuai-Fidow to fullback meant Slater had to find a new player in the three-quarters and he shocked everyone when he came up with Brisbane centre Gehamat Shibasaki. Shibasaki was really struggling to make a career of it in the NRL before this season, having played a total of 30 games for four clubs in six years. But in 2025, in the first year of a second stint with the Broncos, he has scored 12 tries in 15 games including doubles in each of his last three outings. MORE NRL NEWS So he has proved he can get among the tries under the right circumstances, which again is critical to Queensland's chances, but the big reason the Maroons were forced into disarray in defence out wide on the left in games I and II still remains. That is Crichton, at right centre for NSW. He gets a lot of praise for his fantastic defence, but he's a genius in attack as well. He has the knack of sucking in defenders whether he's running with the ball or as a decoy and he's incredibly unselfish, which is why he doesn't score more tries himself. "Critta" makes so many tries it must be a winger's dream to play outside him. Tabuai-Fidow and Valentine Holmes couldn't handle him in games one and two respectively and now it's Shibasaki's turn to try to stop him with the support of Holmes, who has gone back to left wing. NSW will be preparing to put Crichton in those one-on-one situations and he'll be relishing the opportunity to either create try-scoring opportunities for Zac Lomax on the wing or go himself if the space is narrowing close to the line. Crichton did both things to effect across Origins I and II and now he's going opposite a player making his Origin debut. It will be a massive challenge for Shibasaki to try to shut him down. THE Warriors can't win the premiership now they've lost their halfback Luke Metcalf for the rest of the season through injury, joining prop Mitch Barnett as a major out. They looked like contenders during the first half of the season, but this is a left to the body followed by a right to the jaw that they won't survive. The currently fourth-placed Warriors are a very well-drilled outfit under coach Andrew Webster and they'll try to grind wins out from here, but they'll be doing very well if they can hang on to a top-four spot going into the finals. Even with the four-point break they had over fifth place heading into this weekend's round, where they have a bye. THE benchmark has been set now, for all teams to see, by Penrith and Canterbury with the quality of their epic clash last week. If you haven't got the ability, when it's necessary, to rise to that level, which was above every other game so far this season, then forget about winning the competition. "Critta" and "The Hammer" are the two players who hold the key to State of Origin III and where it will be won and lost in Sydney on Wednesday night. And with it the series, since NSW and Queensland are locked up at a game apiece after the Blues, having easily won game one in Brisbane, botched the first half of game two in Perth before making a comeback that just fell short. It's always easy to nominate star players in the halves as the ones who will have the biggest influence on a result. Particularly at Origin level where you have genuine superstars like NSW halfback Nathan Cleary and Queensland five-eighth Cameron Munster so heavily involved. But if you go back and have another look at Origins I and II you'll see what I mean when it comes to Blues centre Stephen "Critta" Crichton and Maroons fullback Hamiso "The Hammer" Tabuai-Fidow. We'll start with Tabuai-Fidow, who will be playing in his third different position in this series after being at left centre in game one and left wing in game two. Even before Kalyn Ponga, the Queensland fullback in Origins I and II, was injured playing for Newcastle last weekend I thought Brisbane's Reece Walsh should've been promoted to fullback for the decider. Ponga had been ordinary in the series so far. So I was shocked when, after Ponga became unavailable, Maroons coach Billy Slater moved Tabuai-Fidow from the wing to fullback and included Walsh only as 18th man. But I get it now. You're going to need top-shelf difference-makers in attack, playing in their best positions, to win this game and The Hammer is absolutely crushing it at fullback for the rising Dolphins in the NRL this season. He's a try-scorer (15 in 14 games this season, including four in his most recent game and eight in his last four), has a mammoth 68 tackle breaks and averages 175 running metres, with totals of 237 and 264 in his last two games. The Hammer can break a game open from anywhere on the field and as much as Queensland will be preparing to defend well in Origin III they know they're going to need to produce something extra-special in attack to win. Ponga wasn't doing it and Walsh, while he's a tremendous attacking player himself, isn't nearly as prolific a try-scorer as Tabuai-Fidow and tends to have more errors in him. Tabuai-Fidow scored two tries in Origin II - one with a straight-forward winger's finish and the other when he won the contest off a high kick to the corner. Playing at fullback is just going to make him more involved in attack and therefore even more dangerous. But leaving Walsh out and moving Tabuai-Fidow to fullback meant Slater had to find a new player in the three-quarters and he shocked everyone when he came up with Brisbane centre Gehamat Shibasaki. Shibasaki was really struggling to make a career of it in the NRL before this season, having played a total of 30 games for four clubs in six years. But in 2025, in the first year of a second stint with the Broncos, he has scored 12 tries in 15 games including doubles in each of his last three outings. MORE NRL NEWS So he has proved he can get among the tries under the right circumstances, which again is critical to Queensland's chances, but the big reason the Maroons were forced into disarray in defence out wide on the left in games I and II still remains. That is Crichton, at right centre for NSW. He gets a lot of praise for his fantastic defence, but he's a genius in attack as well. He has the knack of sucking in defenders whether he's running with the ball or as a decoy and he's incredibly unselfish, which is why he doesn't score more tries himself. "Critta" makes so many tries it must be a winger's dream to play outside him. Tabuai-Fidow and Valentine Holmes couldn't handle him in games one and two respectively and now it's Shibasaki's turn to try to stop him with the support of Holmes, who has gone back to left wing. NSW will be preparing to put Crichton in those one-on-one situations and he'll be relishing the opportunity to either create try-scoring opportunities for Zac Lomax on the wing or go himself if the space is narrowing close to the line. Crichton did both things to effect across Origins I and II and now he's going opposite a player making his Origin debut. It will be a massive challenge for Shibasaki to try to shut him down. THE Warriors can't win the premiership now they've lost their halfback Luke Metcalf for the rest of the season through injury, joining prop Mitch Barnett as a major out. They looked like contenders during the first half of the season, but this is a left to the body followed by a right to the jaw that they won't survive. The currently fourth-placed Warriors are a very well-drilled outfit under coach Andrew Webster and they'll try to grind wins out from here, but they'll be doing very well if they can hang on to a top-four spot going into the finals. Even with the four-point break they had over fifth place heading into this weekend's round, where they have a bye. THE benchmark has been set now, for all teams to see, by Penrith and Canterbury with the quality of their epic clash last week. If you haven't got the ability, when it's necessary, to rise to that level, which was above every other game so far this season, then forget about winning the competition. "Critta" and "The Hammer" are the two players who hold the key to State of Origin III and where it will be won and lost in Sydney on Wednesday night. And with it the series, since NSW and Queensland are locked up at a game apiece after the Blues, having easily won game one in Brisbane, botched the first half of game two in Perth before making a comeback that just fell short. It's always easy to nominate star players in the halves as the ones who will have the biggest influence on a result. Particularly at Origin level where you have genuine superstars like NSW halfback Nathan Cleary and Queensland five-eighth Cameron Munster so heavily involved. But if you go back and have another look at Origins I and II you'll see what I mean when it comes to Blues centre Stephen "Critta" Crichton and Maroons fullback Hamiso "The Hammer" Tabuai-Fidow. We'll start with Tabuai-Fidow, who will be playing in his third different position in this series after being at left centre in game one and left wing in game two. Even before Kalyn Ponga, the Queensland fullback in Origins I and II, was injured playing for Newcastle last weekend I thought Brisbane's Reece Walsh should've been promoted to fullback for the decider. Ponga had been ordinary in the series so far. So I was shocked when, after Ponga became unavailable, Maroons coach Billy Slater moved Tabuai-Fidow from the wing to fullback and included Walsh only as 18th man. But I get it now. You're going to need top-shelf difference-makers in attack, playing in their best positions, to win this game and The Hammer is absolutely crushing it at fullback for the rising Dolphins in the NRL this season. He's a try-scorer (15 in 14 games this season, including four in his most recent game and eight in his last four), has a mammoth 68 tackle breaks and averages 175 running metres, with totals of 237 and 264 in his last two games. The Hammer can break a game open from anywhere on the field and as much as Queensland will be preparing to defend well in Origin III they know they're going to need to produce something extra-special in attack to win. Ponga wasn't doing it and Walsh, while he's a tremendous attacking player himself, isn't nearly as prolific a try-scorer as Tabuai-Fidow and tends to have more errors in him. Tabuai-Fidow scored two tries in Origin II - one with a straight-forward winger's finish and the other when he won the contest off a high kick to the corner. Playing at fullback is just going to make him more involved in attack and therefore even more dangerous. But leaving Walsh out and moving Tabuai-Fidow to fullback meant Slater had to find a new player in the three-quarters and he shocked everyone when he came up with Brisbane centre Gehamat Shibasaki. Shibasaki was really struggling to make a career of it in the NRL before this season, having played a total of 30 games for four clubs in six years. But in 2025, in the first year of a second stint with the Broncos, he has scored 12 tries in 15 games including doubles in each of his last three outings. MORE NRL NEWS So he has proved he can get among the tries under the right circumstances, which again is critical to Queensland's chances, but the big reason the Maroons were forced into disarray in defence out wide on the left in games I and II still remains. That is Crichton, at right centre for NSW. He gets a lot of praise for his fantastic defence, but he's a genius in attack as well. He has the knack of sucking in defenders whether he's running with the ball or as a decoy and he's incredibly unselfish, which is why he doesn't score more tries himself. "Critta" makes so many tries it must be a winger's dream to play outside him. Tabuai-Fidow and Valentine Holmes couldn't handle him in games one and two respectively and now it's Shibasaki's turn to try to stop him with the support of Holmes, who has gone back to left wing. NSW will be preparing to put Crichton in those one-on-one situations and he'll be relishing the opportunity to either create try-scoring opportunities for Zac Lomax on the wing or go himself if the space is narrowing close to the line. Crichton did both things to effect across Origins I and II and now he's going opposite a player making his Origin debut. It will be a massive challenge for Shibasaki to try to shut him down. THE Warriors can't win the premiership now they've lost their halfback Luke Metcalf for the rest of the season through injury, joining prop Mitch Barnett as a major out. They looked like contenders during the first half of the season, but this is a left to the body followed by a right to the jaw that they won't survive. The currently fourth-placed Warriors are a very well-drilled outfit under coach Andrew Webster and they'll try to grind wins out from here, but they'll be doing very well if they can hang on to a top-four spot going into the finals. Even with the four-point break they had over fifth place heading into this weekend's round, where they have a bye. THE benchmark has been set now, for all teams to see, by Penrith and Canterbury with the quality of their epic clash last week. If you haven't got the ability, when it's necessary, to rise to that level, which was above every other game so far this season, then forget about winning the competition.
The Age
18-06-2025
- Sport
- The Age
‘It's Tom's time': How Maroons vindicated Slater's biggest coaching call
The rugby league world was reeling when Daly Cherry-Evans suffered the brunt of the State of Origin axe, all but ending an illustrious 26-game career for Queensland as Tom Dearden was ushered into the No.7 jumper. But in the aftermath of his side's thrilling 26-24 triumph to keep the series alive in Perth, Maroons coach Billy Slater offered an emphatic response when asked if his call had been vindicated. 'You won't get a negative word out of me for Daly Cherry-Evans, he's a wonderful player and has been a wonderful player for a long period of time,' Slater declared. 'It's Tom's time now. He didn't surprise any of us, I don't think, in what he put out there, so I'm really proud of him. It's the first time he's worn the No.7 jersey for Queensland, and I wouldn't imagine it would be the last.' Cherry-Evans' snubbing marked the first time in nearly three decades Queensland had dropped their captain midway through a series, but Dearden demonstrated he was the future of the state alongside new leader, Cameron Munster. Loading The North Queensland Cowboys star's ability to dig deep and straight into the defensive line led to Kurt Capewell's try and the first for Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, while his pinpoint crossfield bomb for 'The Hammer' created his second. He ran with vigour for his 64 metres, yet more impressively, he came up with 25 tackles for no misses to announce himself as Queensland's long-term halfback – a role that appeared Sam Walker's destiny. In what was the first time Dearden partnered with Cameron Munster in the halves, the pair linked up in a dominant opening 40 minutes to lead by 20 points.
Sydney Morning Herald
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘It's Tom's time': How Maroons vindicated Slater's biggest coaching call
The rugby league world was reeling when Daly Cherry-Evans suffered the brunt of the State of Origin axe, all but ending an illustrious 26-game career for Queensland as Tom Dearden was ushered into the No.7 jumper. But in the aftermath of his side's thrilling 26-24 triumph to keep the series alive in Perth, Maroons coach Billy Slater offered an emphatic response when asked if his call had been vindicated. 'You won't get a negative word out of me for Daly Cherry-Evans, he's a wonderful player and has been a wonderful player for a long period of time,' Slater declared. 'It's Tom's time now. He didn't surprise any of us, I don't think, in what he put out there, so I'm really proud of him. It's the first time he's worn the No.7 jersey for Queensland, and I wouldn't imagine it would be the last.' Cherry-Evans' snubbing marked the first time in nearly three decades Queensland had dropped their captain midway through a series, but Dearden demonstrated he was the future of the state alongside new leader, Cameron Munster. Loading The North Queensland Cowboys star's ability to dig deep and straight into the defensive line led to Kurt Capewell's try and the first for Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, while his pinpoint crossfield bomb for 'The Hammer' created his second. He ran with vigour for his 64 metres, yet more impressively, he came up with 25 tackles for no misses to announce himself as Queensland's long-term halfback – a role that appeared Sam Walker's destiny. In what was the first time Dearden partnered with Cameron Munster in the halves, the pair linked up in a dominant opening 40 minutes to lead by 20 points.
