Latrell Mitchell’s absence from the State of Origin dealt a severe blow to the NSW Blues.
New South Wales’ hopes of returning to the State of Origin this year have been severely damaged by the decision to rule star center Latrell Mitchell out of Game Two.
Mitchell missed the Blues’ two-week ago loss to Queensland due to a minor calf injury he sustained in the lead-up to the series opener in Adelaide.
Brad Fittler, the coach of NSW, had put the South Sydney player on his teamsheet, hoping he would be well enough to play in Wednesday’s match at Suncorp Stadium.
Mitchell got back to training over the weekend, but he acknowledged on Thursday that he wasn’t ready to play and would therefore miss the crucial matchup between the Blues and Brisbane. Whether he will be back for Game Three in Sydney is still up in the air.
Matt Burton has been called up to the squad as a reserve, and Stephen Crichton, the 18th man, will take his place. Crichton will play the same role he did in Game One. Keaon Koloamatangi, Mitchell’s Souths teammate, is still the 19th man.
Fittler acknowledged that it had been a “risk” to name Mitchell in addition to Cam Murray and Liam Martin, all of whom are expected to play despite personal injury clouds. Mitchell spoke with the Blues’ physiotherapists on Wednesday instead of attending NSW’s full-squad media day.
At the time, his teammates dismissed his absence, but it was revealed the following afternoon—on the first day of rest for the Blues—that the Rabbitohs star would miss the second Origin match.
An NSWRL statement stated, “The decision was made by Mitchell, the medical staff, and Westpac NSW Blues coach Brad Fittler after they assessed he would not have overcome the injury in time for the game at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Wednesday, June 21.
After struggling in Game One, NSW would have been looking to Mitchell, one of the NRL’s most explosive players, to help ignite their attack in Brisbane.
Rather, he skips his fifth straight Origin game. Due to a hamstring injury, Mitchell missed the first two games of the previous year’s series and withdrew for the third in order to concentrate on club football.
Crichton was among NSW’s finest in the first game of the series, stepping in for Mitchell and scoring the touchdown that gave them the lead for the first time in the last fifteen minutes. He has already spent the first two days of camp training in Mitchell’s place, and on Friday morning when the Blues return to Coogee Oval, he will continue to do so.