Kalyn Ponga and Ben Hunt add to Slater's Origin woes as fullback race wide open
Queensland coach Billy Slater is facing a difficult decision on who to include in the Maroons squad for Game 1 after Knights fullback Kalyn Ponga produced a poor game for his club, while Ben Hunt has been ruled out with injury. Ponga had emerged as a heavy favourite to take Reece Walsh's No.1 jersey early in the season with the Knights fullback starting as the in-form fullback.
And Walsh's recent knee injury for the Broncos had set up a return for Ponga to the State of Origin arena. However, the Knights have now lost six of their last seven matches after going down 24-20 to the Titans on Friday night.
The Knights led by 20 points at one stage, but a horror second-half saw Ponga's side go down with little fight in a season-low for the club. Ponga finished off the game with an error on the last play as he tried to force a linebreak for his side.
And the Knights' recent loss has coincided with a horror run of form for Ponga. This has led to calls for Slater to turn elsewhere for Walsh's replacement with Ponga's form hardly calling for selection. Unfortunately, Queensland don't have the current fullback depth NSW has at their disposal.
Hamiso Tabui-Fidow has found form in recent weeks, but has been a lock at centre for Slater's side for a number of years. Moving 'The Hammer' from centre would then cause another dilemma for Slater over who fills his position in the line-up.
While Ponga is expected to be selected at fullback, the Knights star is hardly filling anyone with confidence as he appears low on confidence himself at club level. The Knights' backline produced all the team's errors during the second-half capitulation against the Titans and Ponga contributed to the mess.
Ponga now has 20 errors heading into round 11, the most of any player in the competition. He also hasn't scored a try in 2025. While Ponga's struggles have coincided with a different role in the team, Slater will have to make the call if the No.1 has enough confidence to step in to the Origin arena at Suncorp and deliver for his state.
While Slater tosses up over who will play fullback, it appears he won't have the luxury of selecting Hunt after the Broncos five-eighth walked off with a hamstring energy. Hunt pulled up short clutching at his leg with no contact made from the defensive line.
The veteran left the field and reports suggest he won't be fit in time for Game 1. And the 35-year-old admitted it was unlikely he will be lining-up, even if his place in the squad was in doubt. "It definitely hurts," he said.
"Whether Billy was going to have me in there again or not, I'm unsure, but it's definitely disappointing to know that you're definitely not in the picture." Queensland great Corey Parker had already claimed Hunt may not feature in this year's State of Origin series with Slater set to turn to the younger generation.
This was also the view of former Queensland coach Kevin Walters. Hunt has featured in every Origin series since his debut in 2017 and was awarded their player of the series in 2021. Slater will now turn to Harry Grant to play bigger minutes in 2025 as he looks for a new utility.
Hunt's injury is also a blow for Broncos coach Michael Maguire. The Broncos have now lost two in a row and have dropped to 10th on the ladder. And Hunt's absence means Maguire might be forced to bring Ezra Mam back earlier than he initially wanted to.
Mam could have returned in round 10 after his nine-game suspension ended. However, the Broncos opted to play him in QLD Cup as Hunt and Adam Reynolds resumed their partnership. But Hunt's injury, and their shock 22-14 loss to the Rabbitohs thanks to some Latrell Mitchell magic, will now for Maguire to reshuffle the spine ahead of their clash against the Dragons next week.
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